The Heart To Know
by jaqtkd
Summary: A set of reaction ficlets tied into my reveal series 'The Eyes To See' Drabble, poems and ficlets. Likely to be reopened in the future.
1. Ch 1: The Heart To Know

_'The Eyes To See' was a collection of reveal ficlets and so I rarely delved into the reactions. Several people commented on this and wanted to know 'what happened next' or wanted more details about the poems and drabbles so ... your wish is my command. Here is ... _

_**The Heart To Know.**_

_I'll start with the end of 'The Eyes To See' so that you can get your bearings. More details on this plan in the A/N below. _

* * *

><p><em>... previously ...<em>

_The Eyes To See_

_Do not believe you will find him. No matter how hard you search he will remain invisible to you," said Kilgharrah._

_"Why? Because he is a coward? Because he uses magic to hide?"_

_"No, because you, Uther, do not have the eyes to see him for what he is. You cannot understand his magic, his destiny or his love. He has saved the lives of you and your kin so many times, against that advice of many others, simply because he could not bear to see their pain."_

_"I shall find him."_

_"You cannot understand him and so you will not recognise him for what he truly is. Your son will be a different matter however. Already the blindfold you created for him is becoming thinner. Already he is starting to become aware of the true nature of the world around him. Soon he will cast his blindness aside and see Emrys clearly for the first time._

_"Then he will understand._

_"Then Camelot will be free."_

* * *

><p><strong>1. The Heart to Know<strong>

"Arthur." Uther walked into his son's chambers and was pleased to find that he was alone. The prince was obviously preparing for his morning training, having just finished being dressed in his padded shirt and with his armour currently being laid out for him on the table.

"Father, is everything alright? How is the clean up going?"

"Fine, fine. That's not what I want to talk to you about. The dragon ..."

"Yes, that was a surprise, wasn't it? After everything that happened before, I never thought that he would come to our defence."

"No, but that wasn't what I wanted to talk to you about. He spoke to me – The Great Dragon - he told me that ..." The King swallowed hard. "... that there's a powerful sorcerer here, living in Camelot." There was a loud crash as a piece of his son's armour was dropped on the floor, rather than being placed carefully on the table. Uther raised his eyes to the ceiling and noticed Arthur's gaze flick in that general direction and smile affectionately. The king briefly wondered what his son had found so amusing.

"That doesn't seem very likely, does it?" Arthur continued.

"No, but the dragon said he's here, in Camelot - in disguise. He said ... that you would know him."

"Honestly, Father. If that were true then I would have tuned him over to you instantly, you know that."

"Of course but, somehow, I felt that there was a truth behind the dragon's words." He shook his head again. "I know there are none with magic living here – apart from Gaius, of course, but he promised me he'd stop practising and he's not that powerful ..." Uther shook his head. "No he definitely wasn't referring to Gaius."

"Morgana?" Arthur asked, wincing as he asked it. Again the young man's eyes flicked towards the table that his armour was being laid out on and he raised an eyebrow. Uther felt as if the knife, already lodged in his heart, had been twisted in even deeper on hearing that name. Her name. His daughter. He shook his head.

"No, he mentioned her as a separate person, said she was evil and that this ... warlock, was good. He said that he was protecting us, had saved all our lives." He scoffed. "Good? As if a powerful sorcerer could be good."

"It seems unlikely, doesn't it? I wonder why the dragon told you as much as he did?"

"He said that this 'Emrys' was his master – a Dragonlord but, that can't be true. I made sure that there were no sons left to inherit that skill."

"The sons inherit? I see. Well, of course, Balinor was the last Dragonlord and he d- ..." The prince suddenly froze.

"Arthur, what is it?"

"N-nothing." The prince's eyes flicked briefly to the table and then back again. He shook his head, as if ridding himself of some unpleasant thought. "What else did the dragon say about this ... Emrys?"

"He said that he would be invisible to me, but that you would see him. What sort of spell do you think could do that?"

"... no, you can do that later. Stay here for now."

"Sorry?" Uther asked.

"No it's alright, Father, I was just talking to Mer ..." Arthur stopped talking and stared at his father who simply blinked, a slightly confused look on his face. The Prince frowned and then turned to look at his servant standing next to the table, having completed the task of laying out the armour for that morning's training session. Bright blue eyes looked back at him, wild and fearful. Arthur shook his head again and turned to back to Uther.

"Arthur, what is it?"

"It's nothing. Father, I need to train the knights now but, I shall give what you've said some serious thought."

"Of course, but we should perhaps continue this later. We so rarely have these chances to talk alone."

"Alone?" Arthur looked back at his servant and, despite a hint of fear still evident in those expressive eyes, the skinny young man couldn't prevent a small amused smile from showing at Uther's comment. Arthur found his own lips twitching in response.

"Anyway, I'll not detain you any longer," the king said striding out of the door.

When he'd gone, Arthur turned back to his servant and noted that the terror had returned to his friend's eyes. A confirmation of his suspicions if ever there was one.

"So, _Mer_lin. Do you have anything you need to tell me?" The Prince asked.

"I ah ..." His servant swallowed hard and his eyes dropped back to the table. "I'm really sorry, Sire."

"You're sorry?"

"Y-yes. You see, it's like this. I ah ... think I've forgotten one of your gauntlets but ..."

"What?"

"Yes ... but ... if you just give me a moment, I'll go and find it and I'm sure that ..." He quickly moved towards the door.

"Merlin!" His servant stopped and turned back towards the prince, wincing as he did so. "Sit! Now!"

"S-sire?"

"I think you and I need to have a little talk, don't you?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN.** _Okay, so I know this now seems less finished than the first part but, if you think about what Kilgharrah said in TETS, you'll see that he implied that everything would be alright once Arthur worked it out so ... _

_I've had the idea for a set of follow-ups in my head for a little while but haven't been sure how to go about it. This is what I've come up with ..._

_For the ficlets, like this one, I will quote a small part of the reveal story – enough to either refresh your memory or set up the new story for those readers that are coming straight in. For the poems and drabbles I'll probably quote the whole thing – seeing they're so short anyway. In both cases I'll put the TETS quote in italics and separate them with a line break. Does that work for you?_

_The plan is to write a 'reaction' chapter for every 'reveal' chapter – even though some were only ever intended to be one-shots and some are edits from other stories. If you visit my profile page, you'll see the details of all the new 'THTK' chapters and the ideas I have so far. I've used any criticism you gave me in the TETS reviews as prompts but there are currently a number of gaps and any other suggestions would be gratefully received. (Seriously ... in a couple of chapters ... help!)  
><em>

_So ...? What do you think? You like?  
><em>


	2. Ch 2: One Word  Please?

_When reviewing 'Just Three Little Words' _SpanglePony_ said that I'd missed out on why Merlin felt the need to confess so ... I used that as my prompt for the reaction._

* * *

><p><em>... previously ...<em>

_Just Three Little Words_

_"Arthur, I have to tell you something," said Merlin._

_"You're an idiot?" the prince guessed._

_"Seriously, it's important."_

_"Go on then."_

Just three little words. Come on, Merlin, you know it's time.

_"Merlin, how are you going to tell me something important if you don't … say something?"_

_"I … well, it's difficult and … I'm not sure how you'll react and … you're probably going to be cross and ..."_

_"Merlin!"_

Just three little words. Easy. Just say it.

_"I was planning on getting some sleep tonight, Merlin. Perhaps by the morning, by some miracle, you'll have remembered how to talk!"_

_"I have magic."_

* * *

><p><strong>One Word - Please?<br>**

_(another drabble = 100 words)_

"And you've decided to tell me this now because ...?"

"I ..."

"Of all the times you could have picked, you go for this one?"

"Well, you see ..."

"We're captured, tied up and about to be executed in the morning and you choose this moment to give me your deathbed confession?"

"Arthur ..."

"And, you're hoping for what? My forgiveness?"

"No. If you'll just ..."

"Just what? Listen to your several hundred, pathetic excuses as to why I should understand ..."

"Please ... Arthur."

"What?"

"I just need you to shut up for a moment so I can cast the spell that will help us escape!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN** _Thank you for all your lovely early responses to this idea. Feel free to visit my profile to see the ideas I have so far and offer your suggestions/ideas in reviews or PMs. Thanks._


	3. Ch 3: Love Triangle

_Apologies for having two drabbles in a row - it was just the way the pattern worked out. The next chapter will be longer and will be out soon._

* * *

><p>... previously ...<p>

_Time For Thyme_

_Merlin had just saved Arthur's life. Guinevere looked up at him in awe._

_"That's the main reason for my gift, Gwen. To protect him. Never to hurt him ... or you. I promise."_

_"I can't pretend that it's not a shock but - I know you …" She paused. Did she? She thought she did. After a few seconds she nodded, coming to a decision. "I trust that you won't hurt him but … Merlin, when he does find out he might not be so understanding?"_

_"I know," Merlin replied, pulling a face. "I'm really not looking forward to that day but, now isn't the right time. Arthur's not like his father, but … it's what you just said. He doesn't truly 'know me' yet. He's getting there but … I have to believe that, when he does find out, he won't even contemplate handing me over to Uther."_

_"No. I'm sure he ..." but she wasn't sure and Merlin nodded when he saw her doubt._

_"He would consider it, even if he didn't go through with it and, Gwen? Just seeing that hesitation in his eyes, even for a moment, would kill me far more painfully than any fire or axe ever could."_

_"Merlin ..." She saw tears in his eyes and moved towards him to be folded in a fond hug. Any doubt or fear quickly disappeared as she realised that Merlin was the only other person in the whole of Camelot who could truly relate and understand the strength of her feelings for the man currently lying on her bed. _

* * *

><p><em><strong>3. Love Triangle<strong>_

He has magic. My friend. My best friend now, since Morgana ...

Magic? I should hate him but ... how can anyone hate Merlin? Nobody hates him, do they? Everyone loves Merlin.

And, I still do. Even after learning the truth earlier today.

I love him.

Not in the same way as I love Arthur, of course, and perhaps I shouldn't trust him now I know how long he's been lying to me for but, of course, I do.

Because he saved Arthur's life.

He saved the man I love because he loves him too and perhaps, one day, Arthur will understand.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** So, this was a difficult one for me as the original was one of the few that seemed complete and recieved no requests for an extension. I just thought I'd do something short from Gwen's pov; perhaps a poem, perhaps a drabble. I had no real idea, just started typing. A drabble I decided ... typed another couple of sentences and then stopped to count. Guess what? 100! _

_So, I know the drabbles aren't everyone's cup of tea and this has had very little editing - simply because that wonderful co-incidence seemed to good to be true. _

_In fact, I did have a poem lined up for chapter 4 and then another drabble for 5 but quickly realised that wasn't going to make me popular. So, I've been feverishly working away at a ficlet for chapter 4 and it's now mostly done. I should be able to get that one out to you by tomorrow morning (GMT)_

_Check out my profile to see what's coming up and feel free to make any suggestions about what you'd like to see in upcoming chapters. Chapter 5 is currently still a drabble - would you like something else?  
><em>


	4. Ch 4: Two Roads To Destiny

_This one's 'hot off the press' after some emergency writing yesterday._

* * *

><p><em>... previously ...<em>

_Kiss and Tell_

_"You …?" He shrugged. "Impossible."_

_"Why does everyone always say that?" He couldn't help but show his frustration._

_"But for this to happen … even if your magic had mixed with mine …?" He snorted at the thought of her limited skill. The drop of it had been tiny compared with his but … explosive all the same. "That is how you've always defeated me?" She continued. Again he didn't answer, but found that he was enjoyed watching the play of emotions run across her face, enjoyed seeing her relive all those incidents, all their conversations; finally understanding._

_"You threatened those I loved, Morgana. From the moment you chose to ally yourself with Morgause you became my enemy."_

_"So, this is all about Arthur?" The knowing smirk had returned but this time he just shrugged._

_"There are many types of love, Morgana. I even loved you once, but I think that we both know that kiss had nothing to do with that emotion." For a moment he saw something in her expression. Regret perhaps? Just as quickly it was gone._

_"Will you give my message to Arthur?"_

_"No. He and Camelot are under my protection, Morgana; and now you fully understand what that means."_

* * *

><p><strong>4. Two Roads To Destiny<strong>

"You really have magic?" It was still so difficult to believe. Morgana looked around them at the flattened circle of grass and summer flowers and shook her head, as if trying to convince herself that it wasn't true.

"Yes," Merlin replied, still sounding a little defensive.

"Then, why?"

"Why, what?"

"Why have you betrayed your kin? Why did you betray me?"

"You are not my kin, Morgana."

"We both have magic. You knew that ... years ago and didn't say a thing, you didn't help me ... you turned against me."

"That's not true. I kept your secret and I did help you. I was your friend when no-one else could hope to understand."

"Yet you did not tell me your secret."

"No. I could not take that risk. You had protection, I did not."

"Protection?" she spat. "What protection do you believe I had?"

"The protection of your House and of your family. I was just a servant."

"Morgause is my only family now. My kin in more ways than one."

"Well, I'm sure Uther and Arthur now feel the same way but, if you had not run to her, they would have protected you."

"You know nothing about what I have been through, Merlin. If you truly understood what it is to have magic then you would not have allied yourself with the enemy."

"Arthur is not the enemy."

"He does not have magic – that is enough."

"He ... what?" Merlin seemed genuinely stunned by that comment. "Is that why you've suddenly turned on Arthur and Gwen? Not because of some hurt they had caused you, or some imagined sense of betrayal, but because they do not have magic?"

"Why are you surprised? It's not as if I started this war, Uther initiated it twenty-five years ago. Why should we just sit back whilst he commits genecide? All those with magic should rise up against him and fight those without. How can you stay there and condone what he does to our people?"

"Morgana, that all happened before you and I were even born. Yes, Uther initiated the Purge and yes, he was and is wrong but ... Arthur will be different. He _is_ different. He will accept magic, I know that you have seen this too."

"I once thought so." She shook her head, refusing to be lost to the memories. "I had no idea how much I had been brainwashed by Uther whilst I was growing up. I was taught to hate his enemies. Taught to hate my kin." She suddenly looked up at Merlin, her expression suddenly brighter. "It's that place - Camelot, it does things to us – confuses us. You should leave too, Merlin. You should come and join us and help us to return magic to Albion." To her total surprise, Merlin started to laugh and, for a moment, seemed quite unable to stop, even when he saw Morgana glare at him.

"That is your purpose? All of this?" he said eventually.

"Of course, why is that so funny?" The smile was quickly wiped from his face.

"Oh, it's not. Not at all – because, bringing magic back to Albion is also my purpose, Morgana. You're not the only one who's getting directions to this great magical future that's been prophesied, but it seems that we've each been sent along very different roads.

"You are just one little man, Merlin. What makes you think that your route is best?" He looked directly at her then, his expression hard with just a tiny hint of amusement hidden within it. Her eyes widened as she briefly glimpsed another part of him. A part of Merlin that she'd only recently, occasionally seen.

"Morgause is taking the wrong road, Morgana. Arthur will be the one to bring magic back to the land, with Gwen and me by his side. That is the task appointed to me and I will do ... anything it takes to fulfil that destiny."

"You do not have the power to beat us," she scoffed. "We will recruit all the sorcerers we can find and they will come to us - not follow you or Arthur. Why would anyone think that someone like you could lead the way to such a great future?"

"You have no idea who you're dealing with here, Morgana," he threatened.

"Please! A scrawny servant who can knock down a few blades of grass. I've only just started to learn and Morgause said she's never taught anyone as powerful before." Merlin looked at her as if he was having trouble keeping a straight face, but she could see no reason why he'd think her words were amusing. He started to move towards her then, his steps slow but firm, his blue eyes never leaving hers. There was that look again – the one she had only started to see recently. Those times when he dared to challenge her, question her, stop her from doing what was right. It was surprisingly scary – showing a hint of something that was so very far from the young boy she once thought of as a friend. Morgana swallowed nervously as he continued forward and started to slowly back away.

Suddenly she gritted her teeth, and stood to face him, annoyed that she felt threatened by him.

"Is that a challenge I see in your eyes, serving boy? Haven't our previous magical encounters proved anything to you?" Merlin continued forward, a slow, confident smile now starting to form on his pale face. "Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you." Morgana held up a hand, chanted a few words and threw a spell at him – determined to throw him backwards as she'd once done before. Merlin's eyes glowed gold as he continued his slow pace forwards unabated.

"H-how did you do that? You didn't even say anything." Still he said nothing, moving even closer and so Morgana tried again, this time screaming the spell at him. Merlin waved a hand casually as his eyes glowed, but still did not appear to need to enchant any audible spell in order to counter hers. "You cannot be that strong ..." He was much closer now and Morgana started to back away again. She threw another couple of spells at him but still nothing happened and then, finally, he did start to chant.

Merlin's words, like Morgause's, flowed and rolled of his tongue, as if he'd been born knowing them. He did not touch her, although he was now close enough to be able to, but it felt as if his magic was somehow holding her wrists, pushing her back faster than she had planned to walk. She felt her back hit a tree – one of the larger ones that had been stripped of it's leaves but had remained otherwise undamaged, and it was then she felt his magic fully for the first time. She could feel it swirling around her, not causing any pain or harm but just holding, exploring even ... caressing her. She shuddered, despite herself, somehow knowing that she was now sensing what he hid from everyone else. That his power was so great that he had the ability to fool everyone – even her sister – into thinking that he had no magic at all. Was his role as a bumbling servant all an act? Was this skinny, insignificant idiot she saw before her just a disguise – a mask – hiding the powerful sorcerer inside?

"Who are you?" He was so close now. So close that she could see the gold sparkling deep within his blue eyes, feel his warm breath on her face. Her heart was racing with nerves and ... more than that. The memory of that kiss surfaced again and she fought with the inexplicable desire to repeat the experience. He smiled then and ... it wasn't Merlin. It wasn't the boy she had once known, anyway. Had she ever know him? Did anyone?

"_What_ are you?" she whispered.

"I _am_ magic. I _am _destiny. Never forget that, Morgana."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** I was initially stuck on these various Morgana/Morgause reactions and debated a cheat for this one – an old poem. Then I realised that I'd end up with four or five short poems or drabbles in a row so worked quickly to do something more substantial. _

_I'm now set up until chapter 7 - have 8, 9 & 10 planned, and have written 11 as it was a gift! Feel free to visit my profile page to see what I've got so far and let me know if you have any thoughts about the later chapters. Prompts and ideas are very much welcomed at this point.  
><em>


	5. Ch 5: We Are Kin

_... previously ..._

_Hatred and Love_

_"Whatever is the matter, sister?"_

_"I saw Merlin?"_

_"And?"_

_"He said no. He will not talk to Arthur."_

_"That is unfortunate. Sister, you look unsettled, tell me everything."_

_"He challenged me - I threatened him - The usual."_

_"But there's something more. Come, we have no secrets do we?"_

_"He … I mean we … kissed. Why are you laughing, Morgause?"_

_"I did suspect you might have feelings for him."_

_"No, I hate him!"_

_"Love and hate contain equal amounts of passion. You two have a strong connection, that has always been obvious."_

_"A connection? Yes. Morgause, there's something else. Merlin has magic too."_

* * *

><p><strong>5. We are Kin<strong>

_(Morgause to Morgana)_

xox

We are Kin, you and I.

Sisters of blood and magic and love.

There is no-one with a stronger claim to your heart,

There is no-one with a stronger claim to your loyalty.

We are Kin.

_xox_

We are Kin, you and I.

Your friend and maid betrayed you.

She chose Arthur to rule her heart,

She chose Arthur to give of her loyalty.

We are Kin.

xox

We are Kin, you and I.

Your brother and father would see you dead.

They no longer have a claim to your heart,

You no longer owe them your loyalty.

We are Kin.

xox

We are Kin, you and I.

Merlin has already tried to kill you.

Forget that he ever had a hold on your heart,

Forget that he ever asked for your loyalty.

We are Kin.

* * *

><p><strong>AN **_Anyone else believe that Morgause has an unnatural hold over Morgana? _

_I admit that i was completely stuck on this chapter at first. The only prompt I had was this from KittyO "[Morgana would] believe Morgause if she told her that she was actually a mongoose... honestly." __  
><em>

_ I was going with a drabble called 'Denial' but was never really happy with it. The fact that, a few days ago, the first five chapters contained three drabbles and a poem, made me convinced the whole thing needed a re-think and so I rewrote four and five leaving me with two emergency spares if I need them later!  
><em>


	6. Ch 6: The Dragon Came Back

_Correction: Last chapter I credited the wrong person with the prompt. Sorry to PoisoningPigeonsinthePark_ _- I'd had next to no sleep the day I was editing that!_

* * *

><p><em>... previously ...<em>

_The Horse and The Servant_

_He roared, and then shouted at the creature in a strange tongue and with the most spine tingling voice I have ever heard. Not even Arthur, not even the most ferocious warrior I have every fought, has made me feel that scared. Merlin!_

_Then the dragon bowed._

_I can't say I blamed him!_

_They seemed to be talking. I had heard that the dragons could speak as men did but I was not close enough to hear any words. All I knew was that the boy, that insignificant servant, dwarfed by the huge dragon, appeared to be the one in charge. Would he kill it? He looked as if he was going to, but then three things happened in quick succession._

_The dragon flew off._

_Arthur woke up._

_I fainted._

_I'm not proud of the fact, but I had hit my head on about twenty trees so perhaps it wasn't that surprising._

_So, I came round and headed back to Camelot to find Arthur being congratulated on dealing the dragon a mortal blow before it had flown off. He seemed a bit stunned too._

_Merlin was nowhere to be found, having apparently just drifted off into the background. When I next saw him, he was dropping an armful of armour down a whole flight of stairs in front of a packed courtyard of amused citizens and I began to wonder if I had hit my head harder than I'd first thought and dreamt the whole thing._

_But then the dragon came back ..._

* * *

><p><strong>6. The Dragon Came Back<strong>

(Leon's reaction)

The attack had been going on since dawn. The army itself was realtively small but Morgana had unfortunately recruited some magical allies too and they were far more of a challenge.

Prince Arthur looked confused and he wasn't the only one. How were we managing to hold out for this long? Surely even just one sorceress throwing dark magic at the castle should be enough to defeat us – never mind the extra ones she'd managed to recruit. It was all very well Uther having banned everyone and anything with magic, but how could we survive a magical attack if we didn't have any magical defences of our own.

I found myself wincing as I thought this and I certainly wouldn't have dared say it out loud. Arthur might well be taking more control nowadays and be a little more laid back about certain things but, Uther was still in charge and still obsessed about all things magical and, nowadays, few people had the nerve to even mention the word 'magic' in front of him. The King was standing on the battlements with the Prince and a large group of us knights, dressed in full armour but looking very pale, whilst Arthur stood next to him looking furious. It was at that moment that Merlin ran up to our position, out of breath, his eyes flicking nervously between his master and the sky.

"Where have you been, _Mer_lin," said Arthur in the tone he usually adopted when speaking to his servant. It could best be described as 'annoyance laced with ... affection'. Yes, I know that doesn't make any sense but ... that's just Arthur and Merlin.

Merlin?

What was it about that boy? He acted like an idiot but had commanded a dragon. I hadn't imagined that, had I? How did one go about commanding a dragon anyway? Weren't they magical creatures? Did that mean that ...?

At that moment another set of arrows was loosed by the enemy but, this time, they seemed to be heading towards our position. There is no way that they should have been able to reach us this high up on the battlements, but the faint blue light that flickered around the projectiles seemed to indicate that there was some magic powering their flight.

"Shields!" Arthur shouted, as he pulled his up to protect his father as well as himself. I, along with the rest of the knights, followed suit but was just curious enough to tilt mine very slightly in order to see what was happening to Merlin.

As usual, the boy wasn't wearing any armour but, he did have a shield. He raised it over his head very calmly, as if not considering the arrows to be any real threat, whilst turning his head away from me to look at the king and prince. Then he stood a little taller and muttered a few quiet words which I was unable to hear. Aware that the arrows were getting close, I braced myself for the impact only to hear something which resembled a bundle of sticks being thrown on the floor. Confused, we all stood up and lowered our shields to see every one of the arrows resting on the stone ramparts. Fifty arrows aimed at us with deadly accuracy and obvious magic, and not one had impacted on a shield or a person. Everyone looked around, now even more confused, whilst I found myself staring straight at Merlin. He noticed my scrutiny and swallowed hard, his face colouring - his expression slightly panicked.

Then he looked up at the sky again and, this time, I recognised the expectant expression and moved quickly towards him.

"Merlin, what are you doing?" I whispered.

"Me?" he asked with a look of total innocence that could easily be bought into if ... if you didn't know he could command dragons and – deflect arrows?

"Merlin ..." This time it came out as more of a growl than a question and the boy turned pale as he looked up at me.

"Not now, Sir Leon. We really should ..."

"Dragon!" Arthur yelled and there were sudden panicked cries from the knights and shouts from the citizens below.

"What have you done?" I hissed, grabbing his red neckerchief.

"He's on our side ... he's come to help ... honestly ..." the boy stuttered. "Look ..." I kept one hand on the material around his neck and turned to see the dragon fly once around the towers and then plummet towards the enemy army – breathing fire as he descended. Numerous knights, soldiers and citizens in Camelot ducked but, it seemed as if Merlin was correct, the dragon was attacking the enemy army instead of us. Several of the sorcerers' magical bolts headed straight for the creature and I felt Merlin flinch under my grip, even though the dragon appeared not to be particularly bothered by the weapons.

"You commanded him to attack, didn't you?" I whispered.

"I do hope those things don't hurt him or he's going to get very cross with me," he said in place of a reply.

"He is?" Curiosity got the better of me and I belatedly let him go.

"Arthur has the authority to command me – doesn't mean that I don't talk back, does it?" he said, adjusting his clothing. "And, believe me, that dragon _knows_ how to talk back!"

"Merlin, who are you?"

"Me? No-one. No-one important."

"Right ..."

"Leon ... I'm only here to protect Camelot, honestly?"

"Does Arthur know?"

"No, he doesn't. Are you going to turn me in?" I stared at his pale, scared face for a moment and then looked back to the scene of the battle to see the enemy now retreating rapidly. Arthur and the knights were now starting to walk downstairs to help them on their way, whilst the King just stared gormlessly out at the scene in disbelief.

"You saved us?"

"And that surprises you because ...?" He actually glared at me and I glared back – wondering, yet again, how Arthur had the patience to put up with him.

"Leon, Merlin, what's wrong with you two?" Arthur shouted up from the entrance to the stairway. "Come on down immediately, we've got work to do."

"Yes, Sire," we replied in unison. As I started down the stairs, I turned to see Merlin looking back over his shoulder with a worried look on his face.

"What is it?"

"I'm just not sure we should leave the king out here by himself."

"The threat is over now, isn't it?"

"Well yes but ... the dragon ...?"

"What about him?" The boy dithered some more, biting his lip.

"Merlin!" Arthur shouted and his servant frowned slightly before raising his eyes at me in an exaggerated manner.

"Coming, Clotpole!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN**. _So, as I've said before, that last line of The Horse and The Servant was always __begging for a sequel. Of course, in some ways, I'd already partially written this plot in 'The Ice Palace' but this one is quite a bit different._

_KittyO suggested that this could be a prequel to Chapter1 and so I went with that idea. In other words ... as Merlin leaves Uther up on the battlements on his own, Kilgharrah comes down and talks to the king about Emrys._


	7. Ch 7: Don't Hate Me

_... previously ..._

_**Tell Me**_

_"You knew Morgana was my sister?"_

_"Yes, Arthur."_

_"You knew she had magic?"_

_"I did."_

_"You knew she and Morgause were sisters?"_

_"Yes."_

_"How were the immortal soldiers destroyed?" No response. "Merlin?"_

_"Gaius told me that the cup of life had to be emptied of the blood within."_

_"That's what happened?"_

_"Yes."_

_"How?" Again no answer. "You did it?"_

_"Yes."_

_"How?"_

_"Well, Lancelot helped me."_

_"But the sisters had magic. How could you have defeated them?" Silence. "Merlin? How?"_

_"I can't say."_

_"Why not?"_

_"You'll hate me."_

_"Not if your actions saved Camelot."_

_"Honestly?"_

_"Merlin, tell me how?"_

_"With magic."_

* * *

><p><em>Had mixed reactions when I published these four months old drabbles. So it's been nice to add the sequels and extensions to them now I have more experience. This is what Leaving-My-Mark had to say about 'Tell Me'<em>

"... a bit too short to be enjoyed, and you cut them off right at the best part of the actual reveal: the reaction of the characters. In this most recent chapter, we get a good dialogue build up but don't get a good description of the expressions, the movements, or any of that. We don't get quite as powerful of a sense of hesitation and anxiety from Merlin or impatience and irritation from Arthur."

_So ... you asked for it LMM! A lead up to the drabble,_ plus_ an extension of it _plus_ a reaction. Aren't I spoiling you today? I really enjoyed writing this one.  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong>Don't Hate Me<strong>

_(Starts immediately after 3.13)_

I could still hear the screams. Morgana's endless cry as she hugged Morgause to her and caused the coloured glass of the council chambers windows to rain down on us. Then the roof had started to collapse and we were forced to leave, ducking the falling rubble, staggering out as quickly as we could, desperately trying to ignore our various injuries. My head and back were still throbbing from where Morgause had flung me against the pillar and now, with the main threat over, my body was starting to protest.

"Merlin ... are you alright?" Lancelot asked as I suddenly crumpled to the floor. He didn't sound too good himself, his hand clutching the sword wound on his shoulder. I nodded in reply but then wished I hadn't, feeling suddenly nauseous from the movement.

"Gaius ..." was all I could manage and, not trusting myself to be able to walk, I instead started to crawl towards the old man who had also lowered himself to the floor, in obvious pain.

Why wouldn't the walls stay still? Why could I still hear her screaming in my head?

Why was everything starting to turn black?

xoXOXox

My head still hurt when I next opened my eyes, now apparently in Gaius' chambers. I tried to sit up in order to look around and groaned as the pain flared and my stomach lurched. A moment later a face swum into my rather out of focus vision.

"Gaius ..." for a moment relief overpower all pain. "... you alright?"

"A few bruises – nothing more. At least _I _didn't land on my head." He raised an eyebrow and I winced at the memory.

"And my back. ... really hurts."

"I know."

"Lancelot ...?"

"He'll be fine." I suddenly sat upright as the whole memory came flooding back.

"Arthur?"

"Merlin ... lie down."

"What happened to Arthur? And Gwaine and ..."

"Merlin, they're fine. They're all fine. A few cuts and bruises and a couple of broken bones. Nothing that can't be fixed."

"What about ...? - Oh!" The room seemed to tip to one side and I quickly lay back down.

"You feeling sick?" Gaius asked.

"Mmm."

"Well, we'll see what we ..." There was the sudden sound of the door slamming open and a very familiar, prattish voice shouted out, made my head ache even more than it had before.

"Is he awake yet?"

"Ah, yes, Sire but ..."

"Merlin ... I have a few questions for you."

"Can't it wait, Sire? He hit his head rather hard and ..."

"No, Gaius, it can't wait I have to talk to him now but ... it is probably best to have this conversation in private. We'll just go into his room." I looked up and struggled to focus on the rather blurred image that was hovering over me.

"Great, now there are two of you," I complained.

"What are you on about, Merlin?"

"Two Arthurs ..." I waved a hand in front of the pair of faces swimming in front of me, trying to work out which one was real. The Prince and Gaius exchanged a stunned look.

"I really don't think he should be walking anywhere yet, Sire and it's probably best if he remains horizontal."

"Fine," said Arthur abruptly, suddenly sliding one hand under my knees, another around my back and picking me up like I was some sort of damsel in distress.

"Hey!"

"God, Merlin, don't you eat anything?" he asked. Somewhere from behind me I heard Gaius' muffled response, but had no idea whether he was agreeing with Arthur's comment about my diet, or grumbling about the handsome prince carrying me heroically in his arms towards my bedchambers.

Wait – no, I didn't mean that. I can't believe I even _thought_ that. Please let me forget the image that just flitted into my head then!

"Arthur, can't this wait?" I complained as he deposited me on my bed.

"No, it can't." I groaned as my head pounded again and the prince moved a stool nearer to my bed. "I've been thinking back to this last week and realised just how calm you were during most of it ..." he started.

"Well, someone had to be," I said pointedly and he gave me one of his glares.

"... and, then it dawned on me ... You knew about Morgana."

"Knew - what - exactly?" I'd long since learnt to make sure I knew what I was confessing too before I opened my mouth.

You knew that Morgana was my sister?" I played the conversation forward in my head and realised that I didn't like it's direction at all. Still, the look Arthur was giving me made me realise that telling him part of the truth was probably not such a bad idea. Especially considering that my head was throbbing so much that I probably wouldn't have been able to think up a decent lie anyway. He was looking at me, impatiently, his eyebrows raised and I sighed, resigned.

"Yes, Arthur."

"You knew she had magic?" This really wasn't going in the direction I wanted it to go. How did he know that? Had he seen her use magic to escape? I wondered if I could perhaps pretend to pass out, but that just gave me more disturbing images of being Arthur's damsel in distress - not good at all.

"I did."

"You knew she and Morgause were sisters?" My mind flicked back to the council chambers again. Had I killed Morgause when I'd thrown her against the wall? For someone who was suppose to be a 'good' warlock, I seemed to have killed an awful lot of powerful sorcerers.

"Yes." My voice seemed to be getting quieter and I felt the overwhelming urge to fall asleep. I allowed my eyes to close.

"How were the immortal soldiers destroyed?" Nice and dark and quiet. I could just fall asleep and not wake up for ... about ten years? That sounded good. No chance of that, the prat was now shaking me awake. "Merlin?" It was a question and a growl all at the same time.

"Gaius told me that the cup of life had to be emptied of the blood within," I muttered, looking up at both Arthurs and blinking hard.

"That's what happened?"

"Yes." Actually, what was the question? Was he asking me if I was telling him the truth about what Gaius had said, or was he asking me if the Cup had been emptied? I shook my head again.

"How?" The latter then. He moved closer, as if realising that I was having trouble concentrating. "You did it?" He asked increduously. If I'd been feeling a little better I think I would have been offended by his surprise.

"Yes." Actually that did sound a little offended. I probably should have gone for more modest tone.

"How?"

"Well, Lancelot helped me." _There ... modest. Much better._

"But the sisters had magic. How could you have defeated them?" Oh, we're back on that bad road again. The one that I just can't see any way of turning around on. Now would probably be a really, really good time to call for Gaius. "Merlin? How?" I gave a little groan, hoping I might get some sympathy.

Yes, I know. Sympathy from Arthur? Like that's going to happen.

"I can't say." Or perhaps I should have said 'I don't know' Play the idiot? Arthur would accept 'idiot' Merlin much better than 'sick' Merlin, wouldn't he?

"Why not?" I tried hard to focus on Arthur now because all these thoughts running through my head were just confusing me and making me loose track of the conversation. His face was coming more into focus - his eyes boring into mine, emotions just below the surface that I was quite unable to read and, suddenly, I was feeling less worried about the road we were taking and more concerned about the eventual destination.

"You'll hate me_." _ He blinked – as if that thought had never occurred to him. It gave me just the very smallest hope.

"Not if your actions saved Camelot."

"Honestly?" Should I? Now? What if ...?

"Merlin, tell me how?"

"With magic." _Subtle, Merlin._ He stared, I stared back. Nothing was said for ages. "Of course, I am suffering from a serious concussion here so I'm probably talking total rubbish," I said eventually.

"You always talk total rubbish. Magic? You? Really?"

"Yes, I'm one of those evil, hateful sorcerers who has nothing on my mind but vengeance and the desire to kill Uther and destroy Camelot."

"Now you're just being silly. I thought for a moment you were actually being honest with me for once."

"I ...?" Could I get out of this by pretending I was ill or joking, or was this really the right time to come clean?

"Merlin, do you really have magic?"

Time. I suppose.

"Yes, I've used it regularly to save you and, as much as I'd love to tell you all the details, I think it would probably be better if you just go and let Uther know that you have captured a powerful warlock. Although, if you wouldn't mind, could you schedule my execution for next week? I really think I'd just like to sleep for the next three days."

"Merlin! Will you be serious?" he shouted and I winced.

"Actually, no ... I've a much better idea. Can you arrange my beheading immediately? That way I won't be able to feel the pain in my head, or hear Morgana's screams or ... or see the look in your eyes when you tell me ... that you hate me." The room was starting to spin again.

"Merlin ..."

"What?" I blinked hard trying to focus. Now there seemed to be three Arthurs. That _really_ couldn't be good.

"I don't hate you."

"You don't?" I really, really wished the bed would stay still. "That's ... nice."

"Sire, I do believe Merlin should rest now." Gaius' voice sounded as if it was coming from a very, very long way away.

"I think you're right, he said something about a headache."

"Can you bring him back into the main room, Sire? He really shouldn't be left alone if he has a concussion."

"Oh, right. Of course." I felt myself being picked up again and this time felt no negative thoughts about being carried to the next room. Actually, it felt quite pleasant.

"Are you sure you don't hate me?" I murmured as I rested my head against Arthur's shirt and closed my eyes.

"Idiot."

"Prat."

* * *

><p><strong>AN** _I wouldn't normally split up a conversation quite so much but, I just felt I needed to go from the sublime to the ridiculous . _

_Whirlwind821 asked for more sick!Merlin after chapter 14 of TETS and I'd love to say she prompted me but I was already halfway through writing this when she sent the review. Anyway WW – I hope you liked it._

_Just to warn you that I'm going away from a few days from Wednesday. I should be able to get the next chapter up tomorrow but there'll be a little break after that. At least I won't be leaving you with any cliff hangers!_

_I've added a couple of links to my profile page. One is to the original Advent Calendar challenge and the others to my blogs and other social sites. Feel free to friend/connect/follow me.  
><em>


	8. Ch 8: The Red Rose

_...previously ..._

_Emrys_

_"You might as well let me go," Merlin continued. "I think Mordred knows, as I have started to suspect, that this is not the time for my downfall. If you let me go then I will help Arthur to bring back magic to this land. Whether or not that will satisfy you in the long run is not for me to say but, no doubt we will all continue this conversation at a later date. What do you say, Mordred?"_

_"Emrys is correct. Now is not the time for any of us to die." There was a long pause before Morgause muttered a few words, her eyes flashed gold and the chains started to fall away. At the same time, Merlin quietly chanted a spell of his own._

_Working hard to show more confidence than he actually felt, the young sorcerer got up from the chair and started to walk out of the room._

_"Merlin?" Morgana called out. "We still have no real proof that you have any magic at all." He sighed as he continued to walk away, not looking back at the beautiful woman that had once been his friend and occasionally, privately, had dreamt might even become something more._

_"No? Look at your dagger, Morgana."_

_There in her hands was a single red rose._

* * *

><p><strong>8. The Red Rose<strong>

Morgana slowly sunk down on the nearest stone bench, her mind swirling with emotions that she couldn't begin to name. All she could do was stare down at her lap as she tried to make some sense of what she had learnt during those last few moments.

Highly distracted, she was only vaguely aware of the sounds around her; the singing of the birds outside of the large hall, the faint sound of the guards training outside, Morgause and Mordred talking enthusiastically next to her ... It was strange that she had noticed the conversation last - seeing they were the closest and loudest - but, somehow, everything seemed faint and foggy and all she was able to fully focus on at the moment was the annoying red rose resting on her lap.

"I wonder if we did the right thing?" she heard Morgause say thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should have kept him here, worked harder to persuade him to join us. Having Emrys on our side would be very useful."

"I don't think so," said Mordred quietly. "He really doesn't trust any of us at the moment."

Morgana turned the rose over in her hands, not even looking up during this conversation. A little while ago it had been her favourite dagger, and at that thought she pouted despite herself. She loved that dagger, even though it had been Arthur who had gifted it to her, but ... Merlin had turned it into a rose. How had he done that so easily? That sort of magic must be powerful.

More to the point. Why had he done it?

There was the sound of a couple of birds squabbling outside the window and Morgana frowned, annoyed, as one the final trills sounded very much like a laugh. She felt as if everyone would be laughing at her now. Laughing about how very stupid she'd been. She guessed _he_ would be too. Surely he would think her an idiot for not working it out for herself. Morgana suddenly shuddered, but had no idea whether that was from the cold or the strange, foreign emotion that was welling up inside of her. It was a sunny day outside but, here in the stone castle, it was never truly hot. She rolled the flower around on her lap again, idly noticing how the red of the rose differed in tone from the red velvet of her dress.

"How long have you known Merlin as Emrys?" Morgause and Mordred had been continuing their conversation all this time but she had blocked it out, for the most part. However, this particular question was interesting enough to draw her attention away from the flower on her lap, and onto the young boy with his dark hair and wide, bright, blue eyes.

"I've always known him as Emrys," Mordred replied. "I recognised him for what he was from the first moment I saw him. No ..." He shook his head, remembering. "From before I saw him. I ... _felt_ his presence."

"How, when I could not?" Morgause pushed and the boy shrugged.

"Don't know. Something to do with my powers or my druid heritage ... not sure."

"Why did you not say something?" Morgana managed at last. The boy just shrugged again. He was at that annoying age now - no longer a child, not quite an adult. An especially confusing time – she remembered. Not that things had got any easier for her once she had become a woman. From that point on she'd had magic to deal with instead. "Mordred?" she asked as gently as she could.

"I assumed you knew. It always seemed so obvious to me." Morgana glared at this. Yes, everyone would be laughing now but, was it really that obvious? Merlin? A sorcerer? If there was anyone that looked less like a magical being it was him. Except, that wasn't really true, was it? There was something about him - an ethereal quality - and she had been drawn to him instantly, despite her station - finding him fascinating when she shouldn't have even noticed him.

Fascinating? Merlin?

"I have heard stories, of course," Morgause continued. "What did your druid family tell you of Emrys? Did they ...?" Their voices continued and Morgana tuned them out again, her eyes somehow drawn back down to the flower. She picked it up carefully to avoid the thorns and then stopped, surprised.

It had no thorns.

_How typically Merlin._

Who else would change a beautiful, deadly weapon into a beautiful, harmless flower. Arthur had it right when he called him a girl.

But he wasn't a girl. He wasn't even a boy - not any more. He was a man and a sorcerer and ... Emrys?

She shook her head at this last thought and glared at the thorn-less rose, suddenly deciding that it's specific form had been a conscious act on Merlin's part. He didn't trust any weapon to her now - not even a rose with thorns. That question came to the surface of her muddled mind again. Why a rose? Of all the dramatic acts – why choose that one?

"Why a rose?" She hadn't realised she said it out loud. She looked up to find the pair looking at her, confused. Morgause smiled slightly – Mordred simply glared.

"It's probably just an illusion, Sister," Morgause said casually. "Here, I can change it back easily enough." Her sister moved her hand forwards and Morgana found herself instinctively hugging the flower close to her chest before realising how silly she was being. It wasn't as if she had any attachment to it, after all, and she really did want her dagger back. She sighed and held it out towards Morgause who chanted, her eyes glowing, before the rose shimmered with a faint blue light. All three stared at it.

It was still a rose.

"Most interesting," said Morgause coming closer. "Did he actually change it? Change it's form and not just our perception of it?"

"Can I try?" asked Mordred and the two sisters exchanged a look before both nodded. Mordred's spell was slightly different but even then, nothing happened. The boy frowned and moved a little closer to it. "Why doesn't it have any thorns?"

"It doesn't?" asked Morgause and Morgana simply shook her head in reply.

"So, he hasn't simply swapped the dagger for a nearby flower. Even that would have been a feat when he did it so subtly but ... but that must mean that he somehow ..." She shook her head in disbelief.

"What?" asked Morgana.

"Literally changed the very essence of the dagger and reshaped it into a new form."

"It's powerful magic?" Morgana asked.

"Yes and, more than that. Elemental I would say but then, I suppose, we shouldn't really be surprised about that. Not if he truly is Emrys." Morgana shook her head again – still struggling to come to terms with that idea. She gently lowered the rose back into her lap and found her gaze drawn back towards it, unable to resist its gentle pull.

"Why?" she asked.

"Why what?"

"Nothing - it doesn't matter." As she looked back down at the flower, she felt an unusual warmth suddenly overcome her. A strange calmness that she hadn't felt for such a long time. It was very comforting but also ... slightly disturbing. Why would he go to all that trouble? What a strange way to show off his magic. Although, somehow the idea of 'Merlin' and 'bragging' together didn't quite seem right. How could someone so powerful pretend to be a servant all that time? She frowned – thinking back to his first years in Camelot. He hadn't been pretending then, had he? Emrys, the most powerful sorcerer of all time, in the stocks, in the dungeons, accepting Arthur's taunts, polishing his armour, cleaning his chambers, serving their food. It would have seemed quite comical if she hadn't felt so betrayed and confused.

"How can he believe that Arthur will be the one to return magic to the land?" Morgause had said exactly what she had been thinking. "The prince does not have magic and so cannot possible understand our plight." Morgana looked up sharply, both women turning to the boy for an answer.

"I think Arthur has some hold on him," Mordred replied and Morgana felt her stomach knot as he said it. "I do not believe that Emrys is seeing clearly at the moment but ..."

Their voices continued as she tried to examine the feeling that had briefly struck her but, as she again looked down at the rose, she felt another wave of unexpected warmth rush over her, dispelling the more uncomfortable emotion. She recalled the relationships that she had had when she was in Camelot; how she had cared for Arthur despite the bickering, how Gwen had always been there to comfort her. How Merlin had kept her secret and helped her to find the druids. She frowned. He had helped her but he hadn't told her about his magic. Had he told Arthur? They were friends, weren't they? Not that Arthur would ever admit it but ... her brother having a hold on the most powerful sorcerer of all time was just as worrying as the thought that Merlin might have some attachment to the prince. Either way, that relationship could easily put all of their lives in jeopardy. Her stomach knotted again as she tried to analyse the unfamiliar emotion that came with that thought.

Then she recalled his blue eyes smiling shyly at her as she had told him that she had forgiven him for the poisoning - as if she ever would. She looked back at the rose and swallowed hard suddenly, belatedly, seeing something in that look that she had not consciously noticed before. The jolt in her stomach was different this time as she also recalled the look on his face today when he had gazed at her with wide, sad eyes and said, 'I kept hoping I was wrong ...'

Maybe Arthur did have some unnatural hold over him, perhaps he was struggling to fight the destiny that he had been forced into but ... Merlin cared for her too and ... She lifted the rose to find her hands were shaking. Yes, she supposed she had known that he had feelings for her back then, and perhaps she had once felt the same? But, if he had really cared for her, why hadn't he told her about his magic. She would have understood then and, together, they could have ... found another way.

The three words slammed into her head and her hands shook even more. No, ridiculous. She shook her head and was surprised to notice a single drop of water glistening on one of the rose petals. No, not water – it was a tear – her tear. How silly.

"Oh, Merlin. Why didn't you tell me?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN**. _This was such hard work. Usually I get the basic framework of a ficlet typed in one go but this took three days and I really had no idea where it was going to go and kept getting this little plot line confused with the Kiss and Tell one._

_If you're wondering about her last question and what he didn't tell her – I suppose that could be a few things but I'm assuming she means the magic._

_I'm going on a short holiday tomorrow and, as I type this have only roughly written up to chapter eleven, with very few ideas after that. I'm hoping that a little break will do me and my plotbunnies a world of good!  
><em>


	9. Ch 9: I'm In Disguise

_... previously ..._

_**Bragging Rights**_

_(Set sometime after 3.10)_

_Gwen could hear Merlin and Gaius talking in their room, but something stopped her from knocking._

_"I just keep feeling that there's something I should do to warn everyone about Morgana," said Merlin._

_"There's nothing you can say. Morgana still has Arthur and Uther's complete trust."_

_"I could talk to Gwen."_

_"What could you tell her that she doesn't already know? Merlin, you didn't see her face when she told me about Morgana's magic. I fear that she won't react well if you confess to the same abilities."_

_"The same? I've more magic then her. Ouch!"_

_"Show some modesty, Merlin."_

* * *

><p><strong>9. I'm In Disguise<strong>

_(Gwen's pov)_**  
><strong>

"I'm in disguise."

It was one of the very first things that Merlin said to me and I laughed because it was funny. Merlin was funny. He was also sweet and clumsy and - well – Merlin.

I think maybe I was in love with him once - perhaps, in a way, I still am. Mostly though, he is my friend, my very best friend but ...

How can he be my friend if he can keep such a secret from me? Do I really know him at all?

Does anyone?

"I'm in disguise," he said when we first met and ...

... it was true.

* * *

><p><strong>AN **_I'm back after a lovely few days away in a blazing hot Oxford in April. I am really tired and sore from all the walking and will probably not be writing today but, luckily this one was ready to go._

_During my little holiday, we were on a tour in a crypt which was once part of the oldest school in Oxford. "Geoffrey of Monmouth taught here," said our guide. "Anyone heard of him?" and after explaining his part in the Arthurian legends also mentioned "... that wonderful programme on Saturday tea time."_ ;) _No escaping 'Merlin' but then, why would I want to?_


	10. Ch 10: Obviously

_... previously ..._

_Headache and Heartache_

_I was suddenly aware of my situation; still with one hand held out ready to open the door and my head now pounding with both the headache and the latest mad revelations. I couldn't face the pair now, my acting skills were not that good and I honestly couldn't cope with hearing anything else. Slowly, quietly, I backed away from the door. Once I'd taken seven slow steps, I turned tail and ran around the nearest corner. ~ _

_~ I heard Gaius' door creak open and Merlin strode lazily towards me. I took a deep breath, got into what I had been recently calling 'Morgana Mode,' but I suppose was now 'Magic Mode,' and turned to face the self proclaimed greatest sorcerer of all time. _

* * *

><p><em>'Gah! So you tell us what's gonna happen or what?' [Kitty O]<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Obviously<strong>

"Oh, hello, Gwen," Merlin said casually as he strode towards me. I blinked in surprise at how much his tone of voice had changed in the last few moments; his usual wide smile showing no sign of the stress and frustration I had just heard when I'd eavesdropped on his recent conversation with Gaius.

"M-merlin, I ... ah, how are you?" He stopped his progress then and turned to me; his eyes calm but his eyebrows knitted together in a slight frown. I was unable to prevent myself from flinching as I remembered exactly what he was – what he was capable of doing.

"Gwen, are you alright? You look very pale."

"Ah, yes ... I ... it's just that I ... have a headache and, well, I was just coming to see Gaius ..." He continued to look at me with that slightly bemused expression. "Well ... for a headache cure, ah ... obviously."

"Of course but, he's about to leave on his rounds and ... well, why don't you come back in with me then? I know the remedy." For a moment I forgot about the mad revelation and looked at my friend sceptically. "Hey ... be nice. I'm getting quite good now – Gaius said so," he responded defensively.

"What I actually said was that you weren't entirely useless." I jumped as the old man walked past us heading the other way up the corridor, his distinctive, round medicine bag looped over shoulder.

"Gwen's got a headache ... shall I?" Merlin asked with a small grin at his mentor.

"I suppose I can trust you with that," Gaius said in a tone of voice that sounded sceptical, although the affection behind it was obvious. Merlin turned back to me with a delighted smile.

"Honestly, Merlin, why do you look like you've just been complimented?" I asked in an exasperated tone. "Neither Gaius nor Arthur know how to say 'thank you' or 'well done', do they?"

"Gaius does ... sometimes," he replied with a shrug. We entered the physician's chambers and Merlin let me go through first, pulling the door violently closed behind him. It gave a sharp rap as it shut before bouncing straight back open and finally squeaking to a position half way between – just as it had been when I had overheard the earlier conversation. Merlin glared at it, as if it had insulted him somehow, before quickly moving to a shelf full of bottles and moving a few of them around until he found the one that he wanted. "Here it is ..." He poured a small portion into a tiny glass and handed it to me. I couldn't help it, the second he came close I flinched again and then coloured as I noticed the confusion on his face.

"I-I'm sorry it's just that ..."

"Gwen, what is it – really? You're so jumpy today."

"Nothing, I'm fine ... honestly, it's not as if I'm scared of ... anything or ..."

"Gwen ... has someone hurt or upset you?"

"No ... nothing like that ... not really."

"Is it Arthur? Because, believe me, prince or not, if he's upset you I'll ... I'll ..."

"No!" I said it rather sharply, suddenly worried about what a sorcerer might be able to do to Arthur but, after a moment of shock at my outburst, Merlin laughed brightly.

"Relax, Gwen, what could I do to him? Honestly?" I stared at him in disbelief, my imagination now running wild, before quickly downing the potion in one gulp. "Not that I don't secretly dream of getting my own back on him sometimes," Merlin continued, his relaxed smile now firmly back in place.

"Y-you do?"

"Of course. I mean ... wouldn't it be fun? I could ... get _him_ to muck out the stables ..."

"... put him in the stocks," I continued, suddenly relaxing into our old, comfortable relationship.

"... swing a mace at him for a change ..."

"... get him to tidy your room ..."

"... throw things at him ..."

"Turn him into a toad ..."

"What?"

"Well, no ... I didn't mean that. Obviously you couldn't do that. I mean ... not unless you were a ... and obviously you're not because ... well, I'm sure you wouldn't do that sort of thing even if you were, but ..."

"Gwen ... " I looked up at him and noticed the sudden look of fear on his face. I imagine that my expression was much the same. Then he looked down at the bottle in his hands, as if remembering my earlier reaction, before quickly moving towards me in order to take the empty glass from my hands. Despite my very best intentions I flinched again and his eyes widened further and his face paled – if such a thing was possible with his complexion. "Y-you're scared of _me_ you ..." He looked back at the half open door and slowly started to put everything together. "Did you ...?"

"Merlin ... I just came over for ... that ..." I pointed at the bottle, "and I didn't mean to ... but I couldn't help it and ..."

"D-did you hear what Gaius and I were talking about earlier about Morgana and ...?"

"... and about you. Y-yes."

"Gwen, I'm sorry but ... you really don't need to be afraid of me. I would never do anything to hurt you or Arthur, you must know that."

"I-I suppose ..."

"No, don't suppose ... believe it." He crouched down so our eyes were level. "Gwen, look at me." I did and I saw the Merlin I'd always know; his large, blue eyes pleading for my understanding. "I care for you ... for you, Arthur and Gaius, and I will do _anything_ to keep you three safe ..." He winced then. "I already have done and risked so much for you all. I give you my word ... whatever it takes." He swallowed hard and moved with me as I tried to turn my head away from those eyes. How could I possibly think straight when he looked at me like that? "What can I do to convince you that I am not evil," he continued. "That I have only ever – will only ever - use my gifts for good?"

"I think I already know that," I said cautiously. "I think perhaps I just need a little time to come to terms with everything."

"Time. Well, of course you do ... sorry."

"It's just ... well, it's a shock ... obviously."

"Obviously."

* * *

><p><strong>AN ** _The big problem with these last couple of fics is that chapter 10 of The Eyes To See is already an extension/sequel to chapter 9. So ... how to do an extension/sequel to the extension/sequel? You see the problem? In the end I went with a drabble from Gwen's pov for 9 and a true sequel to Ch 9 & 10 of TETS + Ch 9 of THTK. Confused? So was I! I've a few more of those 'problem' sequel chapters coming up and am still keen to get your feedback on them. I'm really hoping to get back in the writing mood soon as I've only one more lined up after this - hence the delay in getting this chapter out - I don't want to leave you hanging and so am trying to spread things out until the plotbunnies come back from their Easter Holiday!  
><em>

_Ah ... now, the next chapter is number 11 ... the sequel to ... A Letter To Arthur. That was the one that really got me interesting in writing this reaction fic in the first place. A reaction to _that_ letter? Fun, fun, fun!_


	11. Ch 11: A Poet's Confession

_... previously ..._

_Letter to Arthur_

_It should be so easy to confess. It only needs three words._

_I have magic._

_I have lied._

_I'm a sorcerer. (Or is that four?)_

It probably doesn't matter. I doubt I'll show you this letter anyway.

_xoxOxox_

_Why should it be so hard to tell the truth to a friend?_

_I am light._

_I am destiny._

_I am Emrys._

I'll explain that one to you later.

_xoxOxox_

_Why should I even care what you think? I'm of no importance to you._

_Merlin the servant._

_Merlin the idiot._

_Merlin the ****_

That is completely untrue, by the way.

_xoxOxox_

_Why am I scared to tell you?_

_Why am I so afraid of what you will say?_

_What use is all this power if I don't have the strength to confess?_

_xoxOxox_

_Just three words._

_Don't hate me._

_I love you. (Ignore that, I've had too much cider)_

_I am magic._

* * *

><p><em>I do wish I wouldn't build certain chapters up so much - makes me nervous that they won't live up to expectations.<em>

* * *

><p><strong>11. A Poet's Confession.<strong>

It was the morning after the banquet and Merlin staggered into Arthur's chambers, his stomach clenching, his head pounding, seriously wondering why the sun had decided to shine quite so brightly this morning. Servants weren't usually allowed to take part in such celebrations but, considering how much everyone had suffered during the latest attack, the King and Prince had been exceptionally generous and Merlin had quite happily sampled the excellent cider that was on offer.

Rather a lot of cider as it happened.

"Yes, I know ... I'm late ... sorry," he muttered, instantly moving to pick up the clothes that Arthur had thrown on the floor.

"It was a rather good banquet last night, wasn't it. _Mer_lin?" Arthur asked gleefully.

"Hmm."

"Had a few drinks?" he shouted and Merlin winced, quite convinced that the prince was talking loudly on purpose.

"Perhaps a little more than a few," he admitted, starting to sort the clothes into piles.

"Fancy an apple?" Arthur asked innocently and Merlin groaned at the comment.

"No, thanks. I'm having nothing to do with apples, in any form, ever again."

As he turned around and looked up, he noticed that Arthur was now sitting at his desk, holding the proffered apple in one hand, a very crumpled piece of parchment in the other, and wearing an expression that seemed to indicate that his servant was in a lot of trouble. Merlin tried to focus on the paper, noting that it seemed to be a little singed around the edges, when a sudden, inexplicable feeling of dread started to steal over him.

"I found this by the fire this morning," said Arthur in a tone of voice that was just a little bit too casual to be reassuring. "It appears to be ... a poem."

"A ... poem ...?" A memory started to surface and the feeling of dread became very much stronger.

"A poem which, if I'm not mistaken, appears to be written in your hand." The memory slammed home and Merlin quickly put a hand on the edge of the desk to steady himself.

"Ah no – not me. I-I'm just a farm boy – n-no education ..."

"Yes, I know that I've often called you an idiot, but that doesn't actually mean you're uneducated, and I know very well that you can read and write."

"Yes, perhaps, but ... poetry? Nah."

"Oh, come on, Merlin, there's no need to be so modest. You wrote this, didn't you?"

"Ah ... I think so but, I don't really remember."

"Really? Why have you turned such a fetching shade of pink then?"

"It's just ... well ... I made it all up, of course."

"Oh, I don't think so. I think this is all true. Well, in fact, I _know_ that most of this is true."

"Y-you ... do?"

"Yes, I've known about your magic for some time." Merlin was sure his heart had just stopped.

"You know?" It came out as a high pitched squeak. Arthur was no longer looking at the parchment, instead, he was looking straight at his servant. Merlin swallowed hard.

"So, the question now has to be ... Is it _all_ true?"

"Well ... ah ... as I said ... I don't exactly remember. You know? Last night? The cider?"

"Right, so ... a couple of questions perhaps?" The prince continued seriously and Merlin just nodded, not trusting himself to speak. "Emrys? You said here that you'd explain that to me."

"I did?" Arthur just waved the paper in his general direction whilst Merlin desperately tried to remember what he'd written the previous night when he'd been so hopelessly drunk. "It's what the Druids call me. It's ... Welsh, I think."

"Right ..." Arthur drawled, "... and that translates as ... idiot?" Merlin grinned, despite himself.

"Ah ... immortal I believe."

"Immortal?"

"Don't ask me – I've never really understood it either."

"But it has something to do with destiny? You mention that here too."

"Yes ... my destiny to protect you ... your destiny to become a great King ... that sort of thing."

"I ... see ... " Merlin bit his lip and stared at his friend, completely unable to tell what he was feeling at that moment. "So ... " Arthur continued in the same annoyingly calm tone. "This is _all _true then? Your written confession."

"C-confession?" The prince just waving the parchment in his general direction again. "W-what are you going to do with it? Are you going to show it to Uther?" He looked up at Arthur with large wide eyes and was surprised to see the prince squirm in his chair and suddenly appear a little uncomfortable.

"Ah, definitely not but ... I do have one more question for you," he said, holding the parchment out to Merlin.

"Oh?" the warlock asked, moving forwards nervously.

"Yes," Arthur continued, as Merlin took the poem and frantically scanned it. "Would you care to explain that penultimate line?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN**. Get out of that one, _Mer_lin!

_As I stated in TETS – when I originally wrote this I had Merlin re-read the letter and quickly burn it. "No!" several people said and, anyway, how could I do a sequel if it was burnt so, obviously, Merlin messed that one up to – scrunched it up, threw it at the fire and ... missed. Typical!_

_I've been eating my chocolate Easter bunny this afternoon and am hoping it's not a plotbunny - unless beheading them helps? (Oh no ... there's another mad idea for PoiPig!) Still not getting the upcoming chapters written fast enough.  
><em>


	12. Ch 12: The Whole Truth

_... previously ..._

_A Loose Floorboard_

_As he went to move the bed back, he noticed that the floorboard wasn't just loose, it had lifted straight off, leaving a neat secret compartment underneath. Arthur grinned broadly as he knelt to replace the boards and saw a book nestled within it's depths. Secret diary, Merlin?_

_Ordinarily he wouldn't have considered looking at something so obviously private, but there was something about the book that grabbed his attention. It was large, old and very beautiful. He quickly glanced at the door again before lifted it up ... fear bubbling in his stomach. Please don't let this be what I think it is. His shaking hands undid the clasps to find the most beautiful script, drawings and symbols decorating every page. It was a magic book ... a spell book ... unmistakable. He should confront Merlin with it. Actually, he should take it to his father. He should ..._

_What he actually did surprised him. He returned the book to it's hole, taking note of various other interesting shapes contained within the dark space, replaced the floor board and slid the bed back to it's correct position. He then left the room, closed the door and sat on one of Gaius's chairs with his heart beating faster than he'd ever remembered._

_His mind raced, struggling to come to terms with what he had just discovered. Merlin was studying magic?_

* * *

><p><strong>12. The Whole Truth<strong>

Merlin was bustling about as usual; bright and breezy, apparently without a care in the world, whilst Arthur was sitting at his desk with one of his large jackets crumpled up in front of him. He didn't talk, didn't move, desperately trying to think of an excuse to avoid the conversation he needed to have with his manservant over that stupid loose floorboard.

"Arthur, do you want me to hang up that jacket?" Merlin chirped. "You're not going to need it today after all, as it's so warm and sunny out there and so why don't I just ..." He reached out to grab a sleeve and then jumped back with a yelp as Arthur practically growled at him. "Arthur ...?"

"That's 'Sire' or 'My Lord' to you," the Prince said crossly and Merlin felt a sudden stab of hurt at the uncharacteristically harsh tone.

"Ah ... since when?" he asked, confused. Arthur continued to glare at him and then, eventually, let out a long sigh.

"Sit down for a moment." The request was delivered in a gentler tone and Merlin felt even more confused by his master's recent, unpredictable, mood swings.

"Ah where ... Sire?" Arthur pointed to the chair opposite which Merlin approached cautiously, rarely allowed such luxury whilst working. He looked around the room nervously, as if worried someone else might suddenly appear to tell him off for taking such a liberty and then, after a short pause, perched his bottom on the very edge of the seat, ready to stand back to attention if required.

Then Arthur pulled his jacket off the table with a flourish and Merlin did just that - jumping up so quickly that the chair crashed to the floor behind him. There in front of the prince was a magic book. In fact, it looked very much like _his_ magic book. He risked a look at Arthur who was simply eyeing his servant with a strange mixture of hurt and amusement.

"I said ... sit!" The prince said quietly and ominously. The servant quickly righted the chair and perched on the edge again. "Tell me, _Mer_lin, do you recognise this?"

"Ah ...?"

"You see, I found it in your chambers last week ..."

"In my ...?" He groaned. It _was_ his book. "That explains your bad mood then." Arthur glared at him and he swallowed hard.

"So, at first, I thought you might have it so that you could learn to recognise magical threats. I thought, perhaps, that Gaius was training you to take over from him."

"You did?"

"It would make a certain amount of sense and I'd guessed that's one of the reasons that Father values the old man's opinion so much ..."

"... well, that's true as I understand it - I mean ..."

"... but then I started to think about ... this." He looked as if he was going to put his palm on the book, but then apparently changed his mind, the expression on his face implying that he'd rather rest it on a pile of horse dung. "... and I realised that magic must be like sword craft."

"It must?"

"In that, no matter how hard someone studied a book on fighting, they could never become a knight unless they had actually picked up a sword and practised and so ..."

"Ah ..." said Merlin with a wince, suddenly catching on.

"... I can't see any way for you to recognise a magical threat without actually trying it out for yourself. Gaius of course, well ... he probably learnt before the purge, but you?" He looked up at Merlin then, disgust and disbelief on his face.

"Arthur, I ..."

"Merlin, are you or are you not practising magic?" The young warlock held the prince's gaze for the longest time before his expression and demeanor subtly changed. He stood up a little taller, lifted his chin defiantly and took a deep breath.

"Yes, sire."

"Why? When you know it could get you killed?"

"Because I need to protect you." Arthur opened his mouth as if to say something and then abruptly closed it again. Apparently that wasn't the answer he'd expected. "... and yes, I am practising spells but ... I didn't really need to because ... well, because I was born with it, you see, and ..."

"Prove it."

"What?"

"Prove you have magic." Merlin bit his lip before nodding very slowly. He'd thought long and hard about this recently and knew that there really was only one thing he could do – only one way that he stood a chance of making him understand. Still holding the prince's gaze, he lifted a hand, spoke a few words and saw Arthur jump as his eyes glowed gold. Then he jumped again as his gaze was pulled to the blue orb, glowing with a silver light which was now floating over the desk in-between them. The prince's eyes widened as he fully understood the implications of what he was seeing.

"T-that was you? That time in the caves?"

"Apparently," Merlin replied with a shrug.

"But ..."

"It's my destiny to protect you, Arthur. I'm no threat to you, or Uther, I promise." Arthur shook his head. "W-what are you going to do?" he continued, quietly.

"No idea ..." Arthur fell silent and, after a long and terrifying time just sitting there, Merlin decided to get up and continue with his chores. "What are you doing?"

"Working. I'm still your servant ... well, until you tell me otherwise, and, if you're going to have me executed, you should at least put it off for long enough to find a replacement."

"Don't joke about such things."

"Believe me, I don't find it at all funny. Never have." Arthur just grunted and continued to watch whilst Merlin continued to tidy up around him. When he'd finished, Merlin looked up to see Arthur still staring at him, an unreadable expression on his face. "Anything else, Sire?"

"I have no idea what to do about any of this," Arthur admitted eventually.

"I know, I'm sorry."

"Go and muck my horses out then, and make sure you do it ... properly."

"Of course, Sire, I always do," Merlin almost growled. The atmosphere was getting colder with every passing moment and Merlin was torn between relief that he was not being turned in and real hurt at the impersonal looks he was now getting from Arthur.

"Well, what are you waiting for ... boy? Get on with it," Arthur snapped and Merlin tried hard not to react to the insulting form of address. _Boy?_ He glared slightly but gave Arthur a deep bow.

"Yes ... my lord," he replied with a glare. Two could play at that game.

_To be continued ... (chapter 15)_

* * *

><p><strong>AN **(long - sorry)**  
><strong>

_1) Another 'problem chapter' in that it was already an edit from a story which already had a reaction. In the end the solution to this and chapter 15 came from my three parter 'The Arrow' where Arthur talks about what his relationship was like with Merlin immediately after that reveal ~  
><em>

"Despite everything I was beginning to discover about him, this latest shock was rather too much to handle and I'm afraid ... well, I sulked - for a while. Well, it was a week. Alright, perhaps closer to two.

The worst thing about those two weeks was the coldness between us. No banter, no horseplay, very few words. That is to say, Arthur and Merlin didn't talk at all, only the Prince and the Servant. I called him 'boy' instead of Merlin or any of the other names I tended to use, and he understood, as I did, that that word was far more insulting than 'idiot' or 'fool.' Likewise it hurt like hell every time he called me 'my lord' and I longed to have him call me 'prat' or 'clotpole' never mind simply 'Arthur.'"

_2) Then, for the following short paragraph, SpanglePony asked for more detail about how Gwen made the pair see sense, and I'll be addressing that in Chapter 15._

_3) Beheading that chocolate plotbunny seemed to do the trick! Been writing and planning like mad since yesterday afternoon and am now a lot more confident about the next couple of chapters. Still a few blanks on the last few though. How to follow 'The Round Table' and 'Something About Merlin'? Hmm. _

_4) Also that tasty bunny gave me an idea for a new multi-parter in the early hours. It's a modern AU - not my usual thing- but I've already made a start. As usual, up to date details on all my fics are on my profile page.  
><em>


	13. Ch 13: I Am Emrys

_... previously ..._

_Who Are You To Wrangle With Kings?_

_"Who are you to wrangle with kings?"_

_A boy._

_A servant._

_An idiot._

_I am invisible._

_xOxoXoxOx_

_"What would you know about magic?"_

_Me?_

_Nothing._

_How could I?_

_I am nobody._

_xOxoXoxOx_

_"You could not hope to understand."_

_I could._

_I do._

_I know._

_I am Merlin._

_xOxoXoxOx_

_"Who are you to wrangle with kings?"_

_A friend._

_A sorcerer._

_A Dragonlord._

_I am Emrys._

* * *

><p><em>Any thoughts for a sequel? No? This one had me stumped for a while too!<em>

_Just a hint of a Doctor Who (DT) quote at the end._

* * *

><p><strong>13. I Am Emrys<strong>

The first thing that Merlin became aware of was the pain. He thought he'd been asleep, but the severe headache he was experiencing seemed to make it far more likely that he'd been unconscious. Unfortunately that was a fairly common occurrence in recent years and now all he had to do was to work out where he was and what had happened. He kept his eyes closed and resisted the urge to groan as he started to become more aware of his surroundings.

He was sitting on a chair, he realised. His hands were bound behind him with rope and his whole body appeared to be tied by something stronger. If fact, the sensation around his chest felt very familiar indeed. Chains? Morgause again?

Merlin desperately tried to hunt for a memory from deep within his rather muddled mind. The last thing he clearly remembered was being out on a hunting party with Arthur and his key knights and then ...?

Slowly, nervously, he opened his eyes to find himself in the middle of a large and beautiful hall. He blinked a few times and looked ahead to see a very ostentatious throne in front of him with a familiar looking man wearing a crown and a robe sitting upon it.

"Sire?"

"Do you recognise me, boy?"

"Y-yes, Sire. You're King Alined," he replied with a slight bow of his head. He turned left and right as far as he could and quickly saw the person he was looking for; Trickler - leaning against a pillar, arms crossed and mad smile on his face. Seeing Merlin had noticed him, the sorcerer moved forwards towards the king and sat down on a low stool by his feet, still grinning. Alined patted the sorcerer on the head as if he was a pet dog and, remembering how he'd treated the man after the last visit to Camelot, Merlin supposed that's exactly how Alined saw his jester.

"And you recognise Tricker too, I see?" Merlin just nodded – wondering where this was going.

"Where's Arthur?" he asked.

"On his way home I assume. I felt no need to harm him or his knights." Merlin frowned at this, not at all convinced after his previous experience of this king.

"I don't understand. Why me and not him?"

"Well, you may remember that I was rather cross with my boy here when we last left Camelot?"

"Of course. I know what your plan was. You had Trickler cast a love spell on Arthur and Vivian so that King Olaf would declare war on Camelot."

"Very good," Alined said. "That was indeed the plan and, at the time, Tricker did inform me that you appeared to know an awful lot for a mere servant but, he also assured me that the spell he cast was very powerful and would not easily be broken - hence my ... disappointment when the plan failed. However, after a while, when I'd got over the shock of it all, I questioned him more carefully to find out under what circumstances such a strong enchantment might be undone."

"Oh ...?" Merlin was still a little nervous but, as it happened, his magic hadn't really been needed to break that particular spell, so he was in the clear this time. Hopefully.

"There are only two options," said Trickler then. "One requires incredibly dark magic and the other needs a deep understanding of the Old Religion."

"Exactly," Alined continued. "So, both of these options seemed highly unlikely, unless there was someone with magic in Camelot at the time."

"King Uther has banned all magic," Merlin reminded them.

"True, and yet Arthur was apparently released from the spell and that makes me wonder what sort of sorcerer would want to do that." Alined afforded Merlin with a stern stare.

"He has magic, I _know_ he has," said Trickler, grinning wildly. "Oh _do_ let me prove it to you, Sire." Merlin thought he sounded like an excited five year old asking for a cake.

"Very well, Trickler," Alined said in a bored voice, although his eyes were shining brightly in anticipation. Merlin swallowed hard as the sorcerer approached, on exaggerated tiptoes, highly nervous about what was going to happen next.

"It won't hurt," Tricker said him, rather too gleefully for Merlin's liking, whilst wiggling his fingers madly. "Just a little spell I discovered." He held up a hand and muttered, _"__galdorcræft scína__n,"_ and Merlin noticed the sorcerer's eyes glow gold, something which he'd rarely seen for himself. The next moment, Trickler was flying dramatically through the air in a high arc before landing heavily with a strong crash.

"What did you do?" Alined accused Merlin.

"Me? Nothing – he's the one that said the spell," said Merlin, nodding his head in Trickler's direction.

"Are you still alive, boy?" Alined asked. A groan sounded as a response and Trickler hauled himself into a sitting position. "Well, what happened?" the king demanded.

"Strong ..."

"What is?"

"Not what .. who?" Trickler pointed at Merlin. That spell reflected any magic he possessed back towards me; I assumed I'd be the strongest of us – considering his age but ..." He shook his head.

"He's stronger than you?" Alined didn't wait for an answer but just turned to stare at Merlin. "You _do_ have magic?"

"Why does everyone always sound so surprised?" Merlin asked, annoyed.

"You just seem to be a most unlikely candidate," said Alined.

"And he does?" Merlin asked, again nodding towards Trickler.

"Good point," said Alined with the most genuine smile Merlin had ever seen on the man's face. "And, so now comes the real question. What do I do with you now?"

"Now, you release me before I show you just how much power I really have," Merlin threatened.

"Seeing you are currently tied up I don't see that as a problem."

"Seeing that Trickler enchanted these chains I don't believe it's a problem either," Merlin replied with a grin. "Care to put it to the test? _T__ólýsan,_" Then there was a golden flash in his own eyes and, a moment later, the chains and rope that had bound him had dissolved into nothing. Merlin stood up in front of the King, rubbing his rather sore wrists, whilst Alined shifted on his seat nervously and Trickler whimpered slightly in the corner. "Now, where were we?" said Merlin with a small smile spreading across his face.

"You think you can intimidate _me_, boy?"

"My name is _Merlin_ and whether or not I intimidate you does not bother me in the slightest. Now, if you don't mind, I've got a hunting party to catch up with."

"You're going back to Camelot? Back to a kingdom where your gifts are banned and your very great power is wasted? If you stay here with me, I'll make you my court sorcerer and you will have more power and wealth at your finger tips than you can ever imagine." In the corner, Trickler grumbled and Merlin grinned as he saw the pout on the older sorcerer's face.

"Aw, now you've upset your pet sorcerer, Alined. Do you think that wise?"

"Trickler knows his place in this court." Merlin nodded sagely.

"Yes, I figured as much. Unfortunately, your majesty, I do not think you and I would see eye to eye. Just ask Arthur Pendragon and he'll tell you that I've never bowed and scraped before royalty in my life and show him no more or less respect than he deserves which is, by the way, rather more respect than you could ever deserve." Both Alined and Trickler frowned slightly as they tried to work that one out and Merlin grinned again, enjoying the unusual feeling of superiority. "So, thanks, but ... no thanks."

"I don't understand how you would want to go back there, knowing that you would be killed if they found out," said Alined.

"Uther could try ... in fact he has tried - a number of times but, as you can see, I'm still here."

"But ... you have ... so much power." Trickler had found his voice at last and moved towards the younger man with awe on his face. "Why, you could do ... anything, be anyone."

"I'm happy enough being Merlin." He turned back to the king. "Leave Arthur alone, Alined," He's under my protection now – he always has been. Do not attempt to interfere with me again." And, with that, he started walking towards the door.

"Who are you to speak to me so?" Alined shouted "Who are you to wrangle with kings?" Merlin turned around again, his eyes blazing and the king swallowed hard at the sight.

"I am Emrys!" he proclaimed and, on hearing the name,Trickler whimpered loudly and crumpled onto the floor in a heap. Alined looked at his sorcerer in confusion before turning his attention back to Merlin. The young man tipped his head and smiled, very slightly. "Camelot – Is – Protected. Never forget that."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** We need more Bamf!Merlin, don't you agree? That's my number one wish for Series 4.  
><em>

_Hey – 99 reviews ... fancy that! There's a special prize for the 100th reviewer (and perhaps one other) No, honestly – a little taster of something I started writing yesterday._

_Chapter 14 will be up tomorrow. A sequel to 'In Sickness and In Health,' Now, where does that title come from and how could it possible relate to tomorrow? ;)  
><em>


	14. Ch 14: For Better or For Worse

_... previously ..._

_In Sickness and In Health_

_"Stay … Arthur ..." Merlin pleaded. The prince tried to open the door but found that he couldn't, despite the fact that there was no obvious lock or latch on it._

_"Merlin, let me out, or … or you'll be mucking out my stables for a whole week." Merlin grumbled and the door flew back open. "Better. Now can you mag … move back to the other bed?" This time he was in the perfect position to see it happen. It wasn't a wild whirlwind that he'd seen when other sorcerers transported. This was just a slight shimmer in the air and Merlin quickly disappeared from his bed and promptly reappeared in the one next door. Arthur shuddered at the sight and swallowed hard, his mind reeling with the implications. He was still desperately clinging onto the hope that Merlin had developed some strange magical disease which was making him able to do these things._

_He continued his way back down the stairs and briefly adjusted the blanket around the young man, his jaw tightening and loosening as he did so._

_"You and I are going to have a very long talk when you're better, Merlin," he whispered in a voice that was almost a snarl. "Don't think for a moment you're going to wriggle your way out of this one."_

_Merlin looked at him then, apparently, suddenly very aware. His blue eyes widened and his face arranged itself into such an expressive look of hurt and fear that Arthur's anger quickly dissolved and a lump came to his throat. The thin, pale young man continued to hold the Prince's gaze for a long time whilst, despite his better judgement, Arthur's annoyance, confusion and hurt slowly dissolved into nothing._

_"_Pathetic_, Merlin," Arthur said eventually with a small growl, getting to his feet and storming towards to door. "Totally pathetic," he continued to mutter as he walked out of the main room and down the corridor. "As if I'd ever fall for that!"_

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN (1)** So, what day is it today? Where did the original title come from? To good a co-incidence to ignore!_

* * *

><p><strong>14. For Better Or For Worse<strong>

"How is Merlin this morning?" Arthur asked Gaius as they crossed paths in one of the castle's corridors.

"His fever broke last night," said Gaius with a broad smile, "so I'm confident he will have recovered by next week."

"He better had - otherwise ..." Arthur paused and shook his head, not confident about making violent threats against his servant considering their last meeting. "Is he up to visitors yet?" he asked, instead, hoping Gaius didn't know about his unscheduled appearance the other day.

"Ah ... yes, of course. He's asleep at the moment but ... later this afternoon ... if that's convenient?"

"Of course. Honestly, the things I do for that idiot," Arthur complained. "Doesn't he know I've got a wedding to prepare for?"

* * *

><p>"Still pretending to be ill then, Merlin?" said Arthur as he walked into his servant's small room to find him lying in his own bed - still looking thin and pale, but rather better than he had the other day.<p>

"Arthur, I'm really sorry about all this ... what with your wedding and I'm sure there's so much you need me to do." Merlin started to haul himself up.

"I'm joking of course, although your help will be appreciated when you're able." Merlin again attempted to rise, but Arthur put a firm hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down. "_When_ Gaius gives you a full bill of health and not before."

"I'm not waiting _that_ long. He'll have me here for the rest of the year, you know he will." Arthur smiled slightly.

"So, what was it you were suffering from then? Gaius was very strict about letting anyone see you," asked Arthur as noncelently as he could.

"Ah, just a fever but ... you know, a serious one. He didn't want anyone to catch it – especially you or Gwen." Arthur noted that Merlin avoided his gaze during this.

"But, apparently, Lancelot was allowed to see you?"

"Ah ... he was ...?" And that was _definitely_ a wince.

"Honestly, Merlin, was it just a normal fever?"

"Ah ... yes?"

"Not some strange illness that Gaius wanted to keep me from knowing about? Nothing ... magical?" Merlin's eyes widened at this.

"M-magical? Why would you say that?"

"Well, we've seen all sorts here, haven't we? I can understand if Gaius wanted to protect you from ... I mean ... if it were some strange magical disease then it might seem to ... my father ... as if the victim themselves were to blame when, if fact ..."

"Why would you think it was a magical illness at all?"

"Do you not remember anything from when you were fevered?" He asked, giving Merlin a very intense look, the young man paled.

"A-arthur? Did you visit me?"

"Yes,"

"But Gaius said ..."

"Yes?"

"Ah ..." Merlin frowned as if trying to remember. "You were ... I think ... You got me some water?"

"Not exactly. I couldn't find the jug."

"So ...?"

Of course, Gaius chose exactly that moment to put his head around the door and interrupt their conversation.

"It really is very good of you to visit, your highness but, I think Merlin needs to rest, especially if he's going to be well enough for the wedding."

"There is no way I'm going to miss that, Gaius," he pouted.

"Well then, you'd better get some sleep."

"But ..." He looked up at Arthur with the same, wide eyed expression he'd used when he was ill.

"Pathetic ... as I said before," said Arthur with a shake of his head. Merlin gave a little squeak, perhaps remembering something more. "This conversation can wait until he's stronger, Gaius."

"A little fresh air would do him good, Sire. Perhaps tomorrow? If the weather's fair?"

"Yes, we've lots to talk about haven't we, _Mer_lin?"

"Ah yes ... about the wedding?" he asked hopefully.

"Yes, and that too," said Arthur with a predatory smile. Merlin swallowed heavily and quickly sank back down under the covers.

* * *

><p>Much to Merlin's annoyance, he was only able to make it outside with Gaius supporting him on one side and Arthur on the other.<p>

"There must be an easier way to do this," he grumbled.

"Really? What might that be?" asked Arthur, the question heavily loaded. He grinned as he saw panic flicker across Merlin's face, but quickly schooled his expression when Gaius raised an eyebrow and frowned at him. Merlin simply muttered a disgruntled response which, fortunately for Arthur, turned the physician's attention back to his ward.

"Language, Merlin! Honestly, if you weren't so ill ..."

"I'm sorry, Gaius, but it's just so frustrating."

"Here, let's rest here for a moment. Merlin, sit on this wall, in the sun and then you can easily shift over into the shade if it gets too much," said Arthur.

"Sire, are you sure that you're ...?"

"We're fine, Gaius. Lots to discuss and I promise I'll bring him back if he starts to feel ill. Honestly, I could probably pick him up with one arm and carry him, he's so skinny ... even more skinny in fact."

"Yes, I'll have a nutritious broth ready for you when you come home, Merlin."

"Oh joy," the boy muttered under his breath and Arthur chuckled, yet again forgetting that he was supposed to be annoyed with his servant.

"So, Merlin, about my visit the other day?" he said when the old man had left.

"Ah .. yes?"

"Oh, Merlin, you're up ... how wonderful!" Gwen ran over to their position and threw her arms around him, almost knocking him over, even though he was sitting down.

"Guinevere ... give the boy some air," said Arthur in a light-hearted tone.

"S-sorry. Oh, you still look so pale - you poor thing! Are you sure you're well enough to be out of bed?" She turned abruptly towards her betrothed. "You're not trying to get him back to work already are you, Arthur?"

"No, I'm not. I'm being exceptionally gallant and good natured and am simply here to help him to get a little fresh air." The scoff from Merlin was entirely expected and the young Regent grinned broadly.

"Oh, but you poor thing, we were both so worried about you and ... with good reason ... someone like you can hardly afford to loose any more weight. Are you sure you're alright? She put a hand up to his forehead and then gently stroked his head as if he were a little cat in need of a fuss.

"Guinevere ... it's not that I don't trust you and ... it is only Merlin after all, but ... do you really think you should be showering such affection on another man three days before our marriage?"

"Ah ... sorry," she apologised, although, interestingly, Arthur didn't seem even slightly jealous. Merlin wasn't sure whether he should be impressed or offended by this. Did he really not see him as any threat in that regard?

"Well, I am feeling a little ... weak and perhaps ... just another hug or ... a kiss?" he asked hopefully, putting a finger to his pouting lips and giving Gwen his best wide eyed, most pathetic look.

"Merlin," Arthur growled, whilst Gwen giggled and obliged him with another gentle cuddle. "You are in enough trouble as it is, without adding any more reasons for me not to trust you."

"Ah ...?"

"Arthur," Gwen scolded again, "As if Merlin could have done anything wrong yet. Be nice."

"I am actually being remarkable nice and ... considerate but ... well, if you don't mind, Merlin and I have matters to discuss. You know about ... the wedding and ... don't you have your own preparations to make anyway?"

"Yes, yes of course, you're quite right." She gave Merlin a gentle kiss on the cheek which had him grinning from ear to ear, and Arthur a short but passionate kiss on the lips and left them. Merlin watched the prince as he followed Gwen with his eyes, his cheeks a little pink and his eyes rather wild and hoped perhaps he might have forgotten what he wanted to talk about.

"So, Gwen said something about how worried you _both_ were?"

"No she didn't. She just said _she_ was worried. Why would I be worried about you?"

"No, I'm sure she said 'we.'"

"Your fever has obviously affected your hearing too, _Me_rlin. Talking of which ..."

"I was thinking that I might be up for some of that stew Gaius mentioned," he interrupted brightly.

"He said it was broth, Merlin and don't change the subject." He knew it had been too good to be true.

"So, you visited me when Gaius expressly forbade it?"

"I am Regent of Camelot, you know. This is now my palace and I can go anywhere I like."

"Lucky you."

"Merlin, will you stop trying to distract me. Look, when I visited you, I told you I was cold and the next moment this blanket suddenly appeared around my shoulders." Arthur found it difficult not to laugh at the total look of shock on his servant's face. "Then you wanted water and somehow managed to move the jug towards you without leaving the bed ..."

"I think you're joking. T-that's just not possible."

"And then, to top it all, you did ..."

"Did what?"

"Left the bed." He snapped his fingers for effect. "Disappeared and reappeared in your own bed next door."

"But I can't do that, I haven't learnt that spell yet ... ah ..." Arthur grinned viciously. "Oh, bother!"

* * *

><p>It was the day of the most anticipated wedding in thirty years. The marriage of Prince Arthur Pendragon of Camelot to the Lady Guinevere. Although she had now been accepted by the court as noble (by some with more enthusiasm than others), the commoners were feeling especially excited by the whole affair as Gwen had been 'one of them,' and if it could happen the her then, it could happen to them or to their daughters in the future. The whole city was decorated with ribbons and flags and everyone given a day off to celebrate with the royal couple.<p>

"Although, what is the likelihood of this happening again?" said Arthur as an aside to Merlin as they waited for Gwen to make her appearance. "Someone who is not of noble birth marrying the future King?"

"It's highly unlikely, certainly," said Merlin. "In fact, it's about as likely as a Prince of Camelot being attended by his Court Sorcerer on his wedding day, I would think."

"Shut up, Merlin."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN (2)** Okay, so not that much wedding stuff but I felt the need to reference Will and Kate somewhere in this and I honestly love the co-incidences. _

_As I publish this the deed is done (beautiful dress!) and I wish them both love, health and happiness.  
><em>


	15. Ch 15: Five Hundred

_... previously ..._

_Confessions_

_"Morgana was the only one not affected and I realised ... I knew that she was the vessel for the spell."_

_"How did you know?"_

_"She was the only one awake and ... I knew she was in the thrall of Morgause and ... time was running out and the ..." His voice choked. "The vessel had to be destroyed."_

_"Destroyed? Morgana?"_

_"I-I poisoned her, Gwen. I didn't want to but ... there was no time."_

_"And Morgause took her away and cured her?" Merlin nodded. "And now she's saying she'll tell Uther about that if you reveal that she has magic?"_

_"I hated having to do it ... especially then, especially when I wasn't sure if she even knew she was to blame."_

_"Oh, Merlin, how horrible for you." She frowned. "How did you know though? You always know how to solve these magical problems." The fear returned to his eyes briefly and she was suddenly certain that he was about to lie, or avoid the question. He gestured to the books filling the physician's chambers._

_"Gaius knows things. Uther ... I think he turns a blind eye, knowing that most times the only solution to a magical problem is a magical answer."_

_"Merlin?" Other memories returned. His fever induced ranting in a strange language, his constant proclamations that he was going to solve the problem, only for everything to be find a few hours later. He and Arthur off on numerous dangerous missions and always returning. Sorcerers and various magical creatures exposed or destroyed in his presence._

_"Merlin? How did you discover that Morgana had magic?" His shoulders slumped in defeat._

_"Because I recognised the signs. Because I have magic too."_

* * *

><p><em>So, this is a sequel to 'Confessions' and to 'The Whole Truth,' and also develops the back story from 'The Arrow.' <em>

_Drabbles are all the rage at the moment but many find them too short to be enjoyable so ... here are five in a row for you – hence the title._

* * *

><p><strong>15. Five Hundred<strong>

1. Gwen and Merlin

_(Following on from 'Confessions')_

"You have magic?" Gwen asked shocked.

"Yes. Sorry ..."

"But ..." It was all so hard to understand. So difficult to equate evil magic with dear, sweet, Merlin. "Are you sure?" Merlin gave her an incredulous look.

"Ah ... yes. I don't think it's something I could be mistaken about, do you?"

"No ... sorry, of course. I just meant ... Magic?"

Merlin looked at a nearby candle and quietly whispered - his eyes turning gold and, shortly afterwards, the flame rose up from the wick. Gwen put a hand over her mouth in shock.

"Oh ..." There was a long pause. "Oh! Whatever will Arthur say?"

**2. Merlin and Arthur**

_(following on from 'The Whole Truth')_

"Did you muck my stables out ... boy?" Arthur asked coldly.

"Yes, my lord," Merlin replied, torn between annoyance and hurt. He couldn't believe how much he was missing Arthur calling him 'idiot'. Perhaps he'd imagined it, but he was sure he saw

Arthur flinch as he addressed him quite so formally. _Good – see how you like it_.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Help me on with my armour."

"Yes ... my lord." He worked in silence, Arthur pointedly ignoring him and Merlin had never felt so miserable. Although, he supposed he should be grateful that he still had his head.

**3. Merlin and Gwen**

_(referencing 'The Arrow')_

"What's going on with you and Arthur?" Gwen asked as she passed Merlin in the market place. Her friend looked around nervously.

"He knows?"

"Knows what?" Merlin just raised his eyebrows. "Oh ..." Gwen said sudenly understanding.

"I suppose I should be grateful that I'm still alive," he said with a brave attempt at his usual goofy grin.

"Oh, Merlin, don't say that. Arthur never would."

"Apparently so, although ..." He ducked his head to hide some tears. "I think this is worse, Gwen. He calls me 'boy' all the time and ... the way he looks at me? It hurts so much."

**Guinevere and Arthur **

_(referencing The Arrow)_

"Oh, Arthur, have you _still_ not spoken to him yet?" said Gwen as she entered the prince's chambers.

"What am I supposed to say to him, Guinevere? He kept this secret from me for so long and ... " He shrugged.

"Yes, but not talking is hurting both of you. I'm sorry, but you're an idiot, Arthur Pendragon."

"Guinevere!"

"You both are," she continued. "Have you any idea how scared he is? He's still half expecting you to turn him over to Uther."

"I'm not going to do that," he said shocked.

"Well, tell him that. Talk to him. Please? For me?"

**Arthur and Merlin**

_(Paraphrasing the end of The Arrow)_

"Merlin?" He jumped, surprised that I'd actually called him by name.

"Yes ... sire?" he asked hopefully. Well, that was definitely better than 'my lord'.

"I'm sorry but ... I've been a bit confused."

"Of course you have." He smiled and relief washed over me at the sight. Oh, how I'd missed that mad grin. "I'm sorry too. I wanted to tell you ... but ..."

" ... my father?"

"Yes."

"Why are you here at all?"

"You know the answer to that?" I looked away from his intense gaze.

"Destiny?" I guessed.

"Yes and ... friendship?" There was a pause.

"Yes, Merlin. Friendship."

"Thank you ... Arthur."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN.** I forgot to thank you all for your amazing number of lovely reviews for chapter 13. I've now only got two 'gaps' left and will try to write at least one of them as bamf!Merlin as he is obviously so popular with you._

_I have **such** a treat for you for the two 'Gwaine' sequels. A P. G. Woodhouse inspired farce - it's been a blast to write. The only problem is that it's one long fic, divided into two chapters and I think the gap between chapter 16 and 20 might be too long for you. As I've also only just finished it and there's a lot of editing to do, I was thinking about 'cheating' and moving it back a bit - swapping the orginal chapter order around? _

_What would you prefer? (a) A Gwaine/Merlin farce starting tomorrow with a four day gap - following the original chapter pattern? or (b) or wait a day or two for the start and have less of a wait for the end? (which will be chapter 20 - it _has_ to be!)  
><em>


	16. Ch 16: Time For Revenge

_... previously ..._

_Faith, Pride and Loyalty_

_"So quiet, Merlin? How honest have you been? How well does the prince really know you?"_

_"Stop digging, Morgana, you'll only end up in the hole yourself. Yes, Arthur and Gwen know about the poison now and they know why I did it. Don't believe you have anything more on me that will made any difference."_

_"Are you quite sure about that, Merlin?" They exchanged intense glares._

_"Look are we going to stand here all day trading insults or are you going to give me my castle back?" Arthur asked lightly. Morgana stared at him in disbelief._

_"You really believe you stand a chance against all of these soldiers?"_

_"No. I stand absolutely no chance at all."_

_"Sorry?" She hadn't been expecting that answer._

_Arthur leant against a tree and turned towards Merlin with a small smile._

_"Go on then. What are you waiting for? I can't wait to see her face."_

_Merlin laughed delightedly, spoke several words and raised his hand. There was an amber glow in his eyes, a flash of power and suddenly every one of Morgana's men lay flat on the ground. He turned back to see Arthur still leaning against the tree, arms folded and a look of amusement aimed towards Morgana. Then the prince looked back briefly at Merlin; was that pride he saw in his eyes? The young warlock took a few steps towards the sorceress and was pleased to see her back away._

_"You can't be a sorcerer." He had never heard her sound so shocked._

_"Do you know, that's exactly what I said," said Arthur lightly._

_"I suggest you go, Morgana," said Merlin. "I could do tricks like that years before you even knew you had magic. My power is far greater than yours. Would you care to put it to the test?"_

_"You knew about this?" she asked Arthur shocked. "but I thought ..."_

_"As I said, I've promoted Merlin and we now have no secrets from each other. Now, leave my castle and don't ever call yourself a Pendragon again. I'll remember you to the Lady Guinevere when I next see her."_

* * *

><p><strong>Time For Revenge<strong>

"Go on then. What are you waiting for?" Arthur said to Merlin with a smile. "I can't wait to see her face."

How long has he known? Then my darling brother just stands there and laughs as Merlin - The Betrayer - casts a spell of such power, with such annoying ease, that every one of my soldiers is thrown backwards onto the ground.

Power? Merlin?

Then the pair have the audacity to order me out of the castle. How dare they! What gives them the right?

Now they're both in serious trouble. Just wait until I let Uther know about this.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** So, the vote was a draw so I've decided to move this one forward - mostly to give me time to get 'The Perils of Parchment' edited to my satisfaction._

_This will be the last drabble. All the others are likely to be ... long!_

_Apologies for not replying to as many reviews recently as I'm doing a _lot_ of writing at the moment. I really do appreciate them all though.  
><em>


	17. Ch 17: The Perils Of Parchment  Part 1

_... previously ..._

_The Problem With Secrets_

_"Merlin ..." said Gwaine urgently._

_"Shut up?" he guessed._

_"No … go back ..."_

_"What, you want me to say all of that again?" he asked, horrified._

_"No," said Gwaine with a tiny whisper, "just the bit where you said 'needed my magic to defend him.'" The knight's eyes were wide and uncharacteristically fearful._

_"No." Merlin shook his head fiercely. "Didn't say that … never would, not even if you got me drunk - well, you have, of course but … "_

_"That's what you've been hiding? You've been saving Arthur … everyone … all this time with m..."_

_"Sshh …" Merlin said seriously, putting a long thin finger to his lip. "Yes - no … I mean ... oh, b..."_

_He glared at his friend who's shocked expression was now starting to turn back to it's usual smug smile. He turned the same finger towards his grinning friend. "Now, drink up and - and have another ..." The warlock picked up his own half empty tankard and poured it into Gwaine's. "In fact, have several more ..."_

_"Merlin, are you now trying to get me drunk?"_

_"Yes. Absolutely. I really, really need you to forget this conversation by tomorrow morning," he replied desperately, as Gwaine emptied his tankard._

_"Merlin, I hate to break it to you," he said with a laugh, "but there is no way you can afford the amount of alcohol it's going to take to get me that drunk."_

_"No, no, I guess you're right." Merlin nodded seriously, but a small smile was now beginning to appear at the edge of his mouth. "Still, you might as well finish that one up ..." Gwaine automatically took a sip out of his mug that had, a few moments ago, been totally empty. He suddenly paused, half way through drinking, as he realised this fact, staring first at the liquid and then at his friend, his mouth open in shock._

_"Merlin? Did you just ...?"_

_"Fancy another?" The warlock asked with an innocent smile._

* * *

><p><em><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> This story was heavily influenced by (ie pinched from) a Jeeves and Wooster story by P. G. Wodehouse. He was a genius and I am not worthy!  
><em>

_I needed a 'pompous old Lord,' in this and so decided to give the part to my OC from 'The Invisible Servant' Lord Aron. Seeing he did such a good job last time!_

_**Warning:** If you're reading this in a public place and found 'The Problem With Secrets' and 'There's Something About Merlin' amusing, then you are likely to get some strange looks during some parts of this. You have been warned! ;)_

* * *

><p><strong>The Perils Of Parchment<strong>

**(Part 1)**

Merlin's sudden realisation that he had let slip his biggest secret to Gwaine had the useful side effect of rather quickly sobering him up. Not totally, of course, but enough to come up with the inspired scheme of keeping his friend's tankard constantly topped up by means of a minor transporting spell. Merlin had been working on this one for a while – having seen numerous sorcerers come and go in this fashion – but had quickly realised that it was not as easy as it seemed, even for one as naturally talented as him. However, even though he still hadn't managed to move himself from one place to another, he could now transport inanimate objects, including food and drink. This had been especially useful in recent days, when numerous meals were in danger of being skipped due to the extra work load in the aftermath of Morgana's brief reign.

Gwaine had been unusually silent since he found out the truth. He kept looking at his mug, taking far smaller sips than usual, (and far too few for Merlin's liking), and occasionally nodding to himself, as if remembering certain past incidents. The warlock decided that he needed to distract his friend quickly.

"So, about this tournament that Arthur's arranging?" he asked brightly.

"Oh yes, in order to try and convince all the old Lords that we're just as good as a bunch of nobles."

"We?"

"Yes?"

"But, you are noble born, aren't you Gwaine?"

"Well ... perhaps ..."

"You may not have been officially acknowledged up until now but, you were Sir Lot's only son? That must count for something, right?"

"Yes, yes. If I pushed for it, I'm sure ..." He frowned for a moment, deep in thought and Merlin couldn't tell if he was thinking about his title or _the_ secret. Then, the door of the tavern swung open and four familiar figures strode in, two of them having to duck fairly dramatically to get through the door.

"You two started without us?" asked Leon lightly.

"I only seem to remember inviting Merlin here, as it happens," said Gwaine feigning hurt.

"Well, you should know better than trying to keep a drinking session a secret around here. You invite Merlin, he tells Gwen, Gwen tells Elyan ... you know ..."

"Don't be so ungracious, Gwaine," Merlin grinned broadly, grateful for the distraction. "Go grab a large jug and come join us, everyone - Gwaine and I were just talking about Arthur's tourney."

"Merlin, are you ... drunk?" asked Lancelot, in a shocked tone.

"The mead here is _very_ good," he beamed. Elyan laughed and Percival sat down next to Merlin with a big grin, patted him on the shoulder and almost floored him in the process.

Two tables were pulled together, a few extra stools dragged over and the drinking continued, with the jug of mead in the centre of the table emptying at a surprisingly slow rate, considering how often it was being poured from.

"It's a very good idea of Arthur's," said Lancelot, resuming their tourney conversation. "He had been very supportive of us in telling the Lords that we can, and have, fought with honour for Camelot. However they, of course, haven't seen that so ... it makes sense for us to prove our worth to them."

"You've already passed Arthur's initiation though, Lancelot," Merlin pointed out.

"True, but I have improved considerably since then." No-one other than Lancelot would have been able to say that sentence with such modesty and Gwaine raised his eyebrows to the ceiling in disbelief.

"Unfortunately, I haven't," said Elyan quietly, "and I just know I'm going to let the side down."

"Why would you say that?" said Merlin. "You're brilliant."

"Thanks, but ... I'm not as good as these guys and the Lords said ..."

"Don't let them get to you, Elyan," said Leon. "Merlin's right, and thinking like that won't help your confidence."

"Well, I know that but ... I can't help it. They just intimidate me, that's all ... Lord Aron especially." The young man quite visibly shivered.

"Nerves are always a knight's greatest enemy; one he is constantly attempting to gain victory over," said Percival quietly. Merlin was amazed at just how softly spoken the big man was. He didn't talk that often but, when he did, it was usually worth listening to and taking note. "There is a method I used in the past ... when I had a similar problem."

"You, Percival?" said Merlin surprised. The big man just nodded, grinning slightly.

"The thing is, that we are rarely intimidated by those we consider our inferiors," Percival continued.

"Lord Aron is hardly my inferior," Elyan countered.

"In terms of personality he is. All you need to do is bring to mind all the ridiculous characteristics and habits of the person that intimidates you. Make fun of them in your mind and then, when faced with them, they do not seem quite so scary."

"Oh, I know this one," said Gwaine with a grin. "This is the one where you think about them naked, isn't it? It's really not possible to take anyone seriously if they're standing in front of you with no clothes on - especially elderly men." There was a collective groan around the table as everyone pulled faces at the thought.

"Oh, I really don't need that image in my head," said Elyan. "I think I like Percival's idea better."

"Suit yourself."

"So ... Aron. He can be very intimidating certainly," said Leon, enthusiastically latching onto the idea, "but then, there's that that silly moustache of his ..."

" ... which he never shaves straight ..." said Merlin.

"... and the way he says 'no offence' when you know that he plans to do exactly that ..." Lancelot continued.

" ... and remember that time when he ...?"

"Hang on, this is good. I like where you're going with this," said Elyan excitedly. "I need to write these all down."

"Yes, yes, get the man some parchment," said Gwaine, waving his never-empty mug in the air.

"What? Wait ... do you really think that's such a good idea ...?" said Merlin.

"Honestly, such a spoilsport," Gwaine slurred.

"But ..." His objection was drowned out by another interesting observation from Leon, whilst Merlin exchanged an exasperated look with Percival who shook his head sadly. Even the apparently sensible Leon and Lancelot seemed to be joining in now and, the only good thing about this situation was that Merlin now felt quite seriously sober.

This was certain to end badly.

A large scroll of parchment and a quill were now in place in front of Elyan and he was enthusiastically jotting down all the 'interesting' things everyone had to say about the various Lords that were against Arthur's new knights and would have front row seats in the arena in a couple of days time.

"Oh, I feel much better now," Elyan declared. "Those pompous old goats won't be putting me off anymore. Now ... if only the same could be said for Arthur ..."

A sudden, deathly hush descended around the table before slowly, gradually, four large grins started to appear on the faces in front of Merlin. The young warlock dropped his head down onto the table with a groan.

"Oh dear," Percival muttered.

* * *

><p>Merlin woke up the next morning to find Gwaine crashed out on a pile of blankets on the floor of his chambers. He groaned as his head ached and his stomach churned and then looked back down at his friend, quite convinced that there was something very important he had to remember about last night.<p>

He'd drunk a lot, he recalled. Gwaine had been spiking his drinks in order to try to find out more about him and ...

"Oh no!" He sat up abruptly and then wished he hadn't as his head pounded cruelly. His shout woke Gwaine up.

"Merlin? How did I get here?"

"Not sure. You do have your own chambers now, after all."

"Oh, I remember, I was helping you home and then ... well I guess I decided it was too much effort." He too started to get up but then stopped, groaning. "Gods, Merlin. How much did I drink last night?"

"More than me, but that's not saying much."

"No, I seem to remember you being tipsy on just one cup of weak ale."

"That was not weak ale ... you spiked it." Merlin shook his head. No, he didn't want to be talking about that part of last night, he didn't want to invite any opportunity for Gwaine to remember. Luckily his friend simply laughed lightly as he got dressed, and the pair walked down the stairs to be greeted by Gaius, clutching two small glasses of bright yellow liquid.

"Good morning, gentlemen. Don't look at it, don't smell it just ..."

"... down it in one. Yes, I know ... been through this before," said Merlin pulling a face.

"You have? Really?" said Gwaine, sounding impressed. "Good of you to be so understanding, Gaius."

"I let Merlin off because it's a rarity, and I'm letting you off just because you just happen to be here but, be warned, both of you, if this becomes a habit, my remedy might well be withheld in future. You're a knight of Camelot now, Gwaine, and do have some responsibilities after all."

"Responsibilities?" he said with a shocked look on his face. "Please, Gaius, don't swear in front of the children." He pointed to Merlin who glared at his friend as he downed the drink. "Yikes ... on second thoughts, withhold away, old boy ... That really is quite revolting."

* * *

><p>Merlin parted company from Gwaine, made his way to Arthur's chambers and wasn't at all surprised to see the young Regent already awake. The prince had been having trouble sleeping recently due to all the stress, as evident from the bags under his eyes, and had refused all attempt to persuade him to the tavern the previous night.<p>

Merlin knew his friend wasn't at this best, simply because he was fairly quiet and polite, doing nothing more than rising his eyebrows at Merlin's late and slightly disheveled appearance. 'Good night last night, was it?' said in a sarcastic tone, was as close as he got to his usual insults and so Merlin just nodded and said something about discussing the tourney with the knights.

"Not sure what to do about that, actually," Arthur replied seriously. "I was going to have the six of us against six of the others but ... the whole point is to prove the worth of the commoners and so that automatically excludes me and Leon. However, then it's a matter of which four to choose and what set up would best convince the nobles, isn't it?"

"I suppose, but ... I think perhaps Gwaine had an idea about that, last night?" said Merlin vaguely remembering some comment he was making about getting proof of his nobility.

"You _think_? Just how drunk were you?" Arthur asked.

"A bit. Is there anything else you need me to do?"

"Yes, you couldn't go and steal my father's sealing ring, could you?"

"What?" Merlin was completely floored by the unexpected request.

"No, you're probably right. You'd be a hopeless thief." He suddenly brightened. "Gwaine would be perfect though. Yes, go out and tell him I need to see him. Actually, never mind. I need to get these cobwebs out of my head anyway, prepare me for training instead."

"Yes, Sire," Merlin said with a sigh. "Ah, why do you need that ring?"

"Well, as Regent, I'm supposed to have the power to seal all official documents and that requires the King's ring, which doubles up as a sealing stamp."

"Of course but, you are Regent, as you said, so you should be given it automatically, shouldn't you?"

"Yes, I should," said Arthur, pulling a face. "But ... Lord Aron has decided that I'm far too young, inexperienced and reckless to have such a responsibility, and has persuaded Father and Geoffrey that it would be 'safer' in his hands."

"Well, 'no offence,' but the old goat can't even shave his moustache straight, so I don't know why he thinks he can straighten out Camelot." Arthur gave his servant a very long look before suddenly, unexpectedly, laughing very loudly.

"That's actually very funny, Merlin - and you got the voice right and everything."

"Well, he ... came up in conversation last night," he replied with a grin for the compliment. "So, you're planning to steal the seal back from Aron then, not from Uther?"

"Of course. Don't worry about it. I'll talk to Gwaine later."

"I'm really don't think ..."

"Didn't we decide years ago that it was much better for everyone if you didn't think, _Mer_lin? Right, have you finished?" His servant nodded with a large sigh. "Good, let's go training then."

"Yes, Sire."

* * *

><p>During a break in that morning's training Elyan come running up to Merlin, panic written all over his face.<p>

"Merlin, Merlin, you have to help me. Can you remember what happened to that parchment? No-one else knows who took it and I checked the tavern ... we definitely didn't leave it there."

"Elyan ... I hate to say, 'I told you so' but ..."

"Yes, yes. This is not the time to gloat, Merlin. What if the Lords get a hold of it ... or Arthur?"

"Oh no." Merlin had a sudden sinking feeling. "Elyan, I didn't ... join in with that bit did I? I can remember everyone trying to persuade me – saying something about me knowing things about Arthur that no-one else did but ..." Elyan's lips definitely twitched which Merlin took as a very bad sign.

"All the more reason to find out what happened to it. They all denied it but I think ... well, if anyone has it and isn't saying then it's got to be ..."

"... Gwaine, of course."

"So, you'll talk to him, right? You'll be able to persuade him to do the right thing, won't you? It's in my handwriting, Merlin. If that parchment falls into the wrong hands ..."

Merlin quickly found Gwaine taking a break in the sunshine - still looking a little pale as he struggled with his hangover.

"Elyan's mislaid that parchment he was writing on last night. You didn't take it by chance did you?" he asked the knight.

"Yup."

"Gwaine, honestly – Elyan's frantic. Last night was all about giving him confidence not making him a nervous wreck."

"He'll be fine. He's tougher than he makes out."

"Gwaine, you will hand over that parchment, now!" Merlin ordered in a tone which even surprised himself. Gwaine raised his eyebrows

"Well, I'd love to oblige you, mate, except ... I need this favour from you. I can't decide which side to fight on in this tourney."

"You're going to be on Arthur's side, obviously."

"Yes, but which side is he on?"

"Don't be daft, you can't have just three against ..."

"Three against three; Arthur, me and Leon - the nobles, against Elyan, Percival and Lancelot - the commoners."

"Ah, that might just work ... but didn't Arthur want all four of you on show?"

"Perhaps, but who's the best knight in Camelot? Arthur. Shouldn't the true commoners prove they can fight the one that really matters? If those three can hold their own, or even beat a group that includes Arthur, the Lords will _have_ to take them seriously."

"Yes, but what's to stop you three from going easy on the others?"

"As if," he scoffed. "Anyway could anyone, even Aron, seriously entertain the idea that Leon or Arthur might be fighting dishonourably?"

"Oh, good point. So, what's the favour?"

"I need to show Arthur my seal of nobility."

"Haven't you asked Geoffrey?"

"Yes, he checked and said that I am registered, but that he has no proof that it's me, and that I have no proof to show him and ... he's right."

"Well, what do you expect me to do about it?"

"Well, I was talking to Lancelot about that time he pretended to be a noble and he said that you 'acquired' this document for him. Now, I didn't push the issue as I could see he was being evasive, but, after finding out all about you last night I ..."

"Wait!" He held up a hand. "What?"

"Oh come on, Merlin. You don't honestly think I would have forgotten something like that, do you?"

"Well, I had sort of ... hoped?" he squeaked.

"I'm sure you did," Gwaine laughed, thumping Merlin on the arm. "Thanks for all the free drinks by the way – I'm definitely going to take you out with me more often." Merlin groaned. "And, of course, I have about six thousand questions to ask you but ..." He held up a hand when his friend tried to interrupt. " ... plenty of time for that later. As I was saying, talking to Lancelot, I assumed that you had used your magic to forge a seal of nobility?"

"Ah ... yes," he admitted with a wince.

"So, you can do that again for me? Although, strictly speaking, you won't be forging it, you'll just be making me a copy that you know I'm perfectly entitled to have."

"Well, I'm really not so sure ..."

"Then, of course, I will happily give you the parchment." Merlin's paused, his mouth still open, staring in disbelief at his grinning friend.

"Gwaine? Are you blackmailing me?"

"Yup."

"And, if I say no?" Gwaine just grinned. "Gwaine ... you wouldn't ... tell Arthur about ..." he looked around nervously and dropped his voice to a whisper, "... my magic?"

"What and risk loosing that pretty little head of yours? Of course not. Honestly, Merlin, what do you take me for? No, your secret is safe with me but, if you don't oblige me, then that eloquent little note of Elyan's just might find it's way onto your beloved Princess' desk."

"Arthur? Why would that ...?"

"You do remember that he was a late addition to that little prose?"

"Yes but ..."

"And you remember the gossip Leon said he'd overheard? The talk in regard to all the extra 'services' Arthur requires of his favourite little manservant?"

"That didn't get written down?" he asked horrified.

"That and numerous observations and fascinating stories about his royal pratness, including your own, very interesting contribution, of course."

"I didn't? I mean I know you tried to make me but ... I'm quite sure I ..." Merlin frowned as he desperately tried to remember what he'd said last night.

"Well yes, you did seem to object quite a bit at first – seemed quite upset about how much we were trying to pressurise you. In fact, I clearly remember you saying that there was no way you were ever going to tell us anything about the birthmark Arthur has on his ..."

"Stop, right there!" Gwaine smirked at him. "Gods, was I _that_ drunk? Wait, you mean to say that Elyan wrote _that_ down too? If Arthur ever reads it he'd _know_ it was me ..."

"... because only you get to see that part of his ...?"

"Oh, stop it, Gwaine. I prepare his bath for him, that's all. Get your mind out of the gutter."

"Spoilsport. So, you'll copy that document for me then?"

"Yes, Gwaine," he sulked.

"Good. You toddle off and do that then. I've got to go and steal a ring for Arthur."

Merlin shook his head sadly. This was going to be a _very_ long day.

xoXox

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** Anyone recognise which J&W book/episode inspired this? Can you tell which Wodehouse characters our Merlin crowd are playing?_

_The second part of this is going to be the finale of this fic – Chapter 20. Sorry about that but, I'm only missing Chapter 19 now (and inspiration struck on that last night), and so should be able to update regularly until then (see my profile page for the latest info).  
><em>

_**off-topic note:** The next thing on my 'to do' list is to extend my fic 'Sensing Magic,' which so many people have asked/begged for. I do have a second chapter roughly written, but currently have no idea where I want it to end up. If you've read it and liked it, please PM me with your thoughts and suggestions about how you'd like it to progress. Thanks._


	18. Ch 18: The 'L' Word

... previously ...

Promise Me

_"Merlin, what is it?" He asked, filling up his own mug. I took a deep swig from mine and, luckily, instinctively, Arthur followed suit._

_"You said I was your friend but … I've not been honest with you and … I'm sorry. I've kept secrets, one particular secret and – well, I think perhaps you've already guessed that?"_

_"You have always been a bit of a mystery to me, yes," he said, taking another large drink and emptying his goblet in the process. "I knew from very early on that you weren't a complete idiot but then, I think it was probably the only reason I didn't fire you on the spot." I winced as the word 'fire' conjured up too many unpleasant images, both of this afternoon and what Arthur might do to me after this confession._

_"I made Gaius a promise that I would tell anyone, that I wouldn't tell you but now ..." I shook my head._

_"Merlin, you can tell me anything. After everything we've been through together, you must know that you can trust me." I looked up at him and his open expression, those clear blue eyes currently full of affection, and suddenly doubted my courage to continue – dreading seeing some other emotion there instead._

_"Arthur. Promise me you'll hear me out?"_

_"Merlin?"_

_"I ..."_

Coward! You total coward, you can't even say it, can you?_ My eyes fell on the jug in front of me and, with Arthur still looking straight at me, I willed it to move. I saw him jump – probably noticing my eyes change colour - but I kept focusing on the jug, moved it towards his cup and then allowed it to slowly tilt so that the liquid refilled his drink._

_"Merlin! W-what? Was that ...? Did you just …?" He moved his hand to the cup very slowly, picked it up as if he expected it to burn him and then looked nervously at the liquid inside._

_"Just drink it, Arthur. As I said, you definitely need it more than me."_

* * *

><p>'This is the best reveal fic ever written, except it ends too soon!' [Mrs Bonner]<p>

_How could I refuse to oblige after such a lovely comment? That fic was obviously 'first-person Merlin' and so now I start part way through 'Promise Me' in 'first-person Arthur and then continue. _

_Btw - in case you were wondering. I roughly wrote all of this on Saturday and have done nothing but tweak since then but, this first section does resonate in light of recent events. In fact, it's actually a bit spooky!  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong>The 'L' Word<strong>

It had been a sombre day and a sombre duty. Saying farewell to Camelot's beloved Court Physician. Because that is what he was. Loved. Even I, Prince Arthur of Camelot who is hopeless at showing emotions, hopelessly bad at saying the 'L' word would have described Gaius as such.

We lost so many during this latest epidemic; Gaius was not the first, nor will he be the last. Anyone could be next. Unfortunately, it will probably be my father.

Not everyone will grieve on that day, some might even celebrate, but we should always mourn the loss of any life, shouldn't we? No matter who they are or what they've done? Even as a Knight, a warrior, trained to kill from birth, I would still say I valued life, honoured all those that have died at my hand, mourned for them in my own way.

King Uther has done many good things but, unfortunately, I suspect that he will only be remembered for the bad. I fear that, in the future, history will call him evil, wicked and mad.

I have always called him ... father.

* * *

><p>I was interrupted from my less than cheerful thoughts by Merlin entering my chambers.<p>

"And still you don't knock," I said.

"Why would I need to knock?" he asked innocently with one of his usual goofy smiles. "Gwen's not here, is she? Come on now, own up … have you hidden her under the bed?"

Honestly, that boy ... why do I let him speak to me like that? Although, I suppose I really shouldn't call him a boy anymore. Not when he's well into his twenties and has so much responsibility resting on his shoulders. He's now our court physician; not a job he feels qualified for and one that must constantly remind him of Gaius. Well, I understand the pressures of inheriting a job from your father, of course I do. Yet, here Merlin is, still my manservant too and ... if he asked to leave? If he asked to spend all his time focusing on medicine? Just the thought of that possibility makes me feel uncomfortable. Not that he would, despite how badly I've treated him - and yes, I have treated him badly at times. I know he wants to stay here and I know he does not consider himself able to take on Gaius' job indefinitely. At this moment in time, Merlin is the most qualified physician in Camelot.

Now there's a statement that neither he nor I would ever have expected to utter.

That will have to change though; Merlin's already sent word to another who might be able to replace Gaius or recommend someone who can. Right now, that's not important thought. Right now, Merlin is here and, despite his jokes, my servant is looking tired, and heart sick. Opposites attract? Where there ever two more different people? Fair and dark, muscular and lean, noble and commoner, introverted and emotional.

"Come, sit down. You need a drink, my friend," I said and was surprised to see him wince. "What?"

"You called me - friend … again." I grinned, suddenly remembering the very first time we'd met. The first time this strange, skinny, annoying boy stood up to the Prince of Camelot.

"My mistake, I could never have a friend as annoying as you," I replied.

"Nor I one as st..." He started to quote back automatically but then stopped, shaking his head. "No … no more insults."

"Spoilsport. Why not?"

"There's something I have to tell you."

Alright, so we joke, we banter, we're famous for it. I know that those new arrivals in Camelot are initially shocked by the way my servant talks to me and the way I encourage him. Sometimes I hear them comment, or see their disapproval and then, usually, someone puts an arm around their shoulders, takes them to one side and talks to them and, from that point on, they just smile and nod - understanding. Strange how it needs to be explained, it seems so obvious to me – and to Merlin, I think. I moved over to the table to pour a drink and asked Merlin - my friend - to join me.

"Here," I said offering the first one to him. "As I said – I think you need it."

"I do, but your better pour yourself a large one too – you're going to need it more than me, I think."

"Merlin, what is it?" I sat down and poured my own as Merlin took a surprisingly deep swig from his cup. I'd never thought of him as one to drink – struggle to recall him ever loosing control at celebrations, now I come to think of it. I took a large sip of my own, now quite aware that this was not a time for jokes. Merlin had something of great importance to tell me and so I would listen and try to help.

"You said I was your friend but … I've not been honest with you and … I'm sorry. I've kept secrets, one particular secret and – well, I think you perhaps have guessed that."

"You have always been a bit of a mystery to me, yes," I said, taking another large drink and emptying my goblet in the process. "I knew from very early on that you weren't a complete idiot but then, I think it was probably the only reason I didn't fire you." He winced again and I thought that perhaps he seemed nervous. Surely he wasn't nervous about me.

"I made Gaius a promise that I wouldn't tell anyone, that I wouldn't tell you, but now ..."

"Merlin, you can tell me anything. After everything we've been through together, you must know that you can trust me." He looked up at me with such an open expression. So full of hope and yet, so full of fear.

"Arthur I ..."

So, I waited. Yes, I admit that I'm bad at showing emotions and often feel awkward when others show them but ... this is Merlin and ... I ...

And there's my problem. I know how I feel about Merlin but, try as I might, I just can't tell others and I certainly can't tell him. He knows though. Doesn't he?

I followed those bright, blue, sad eyes as they moved nervously from mine and turned to the jug in front of us. He looked up a little then and suddenly, to my total shock and horror, I saw those same blue eyes glow gold.

Magic?

Was it? In all my experience with sorcerers – and I'd met my fair share – they had chanted some spell before the magic had happened but here there was nothing but blue eyes turning to gold and then, the jug in front of me lifted up, floated towards me and slowly, elegantly, tipped over my cup and poured the liquid into it. It was totally shocking, totally terrifying.

Totally beautiful.

"Merlin! W-what? Was that ...? Did you just …?" I moved to pick the cup up and was surprised that it felt normal, that the liquid looked normal but, if Merlin was a sorcerer ...?

My thought processes stopped at that point and I just stared at the liquid as it splashed around the insides of the cup.

"You'd better drink it, Arthur. As I said, you definitely need it more than me."

I looked up at him again and was surprised to note that he looked exactly the same. There, in front of me was my servant, my court physician, my best friend. The same skinny, big eared, strangely loyal young man that I've always known and yet ...

"Merlin ...?"

"Arthur ... I'm so sorry I didn't tell you."

"You ... you have magic?"

"Yes."

"Why? Why do you practise such an art when you know it's banned? When you know it could get you killed?" I was quite unable to prevent the anger from seeping into my voice. The _idiot_!

"Would you kill me, Arthur? Will you order my execution now that you know?"

"Merlin!" Of all the things to say, he has to ask me that? Now? Then, he just stared at me with that pathetic, emotional, tear-filled look that I'd seen several times before, but has rarely, thankfully, been directed towards me. I am quite convinced that no-one, not even my father, would be able to order his execution if faced by that look.

What was going on in my head – my heart? I now had no idea.

"I did not choose to practise magic, Arthur. It chose me. I was born with the ability, just as you were born to be King, born with the natural ability to fight. I was born with the natural ability to do magic. This is me, Arthur, this is who I am." I shook my head. Not because I didn't believe him - right then, I didn't know what to believe. No, I shook my head because I was struggling to cope with all the thoughts and emotions rattling around in there.

I suddenly had the strangest wish to have Guinevere here with me. She'd know what to do. She's know what to say.

"Who else knows?" I asked.

"Gaius knew." He paused frowning. "Lancelot too. They both saw me use it – quite early on. Before I got good at hiding it."

"Anyone else?"

"No-one here in Camelot. Not as far as I know, anyway." I suddenly realised that I hadn't answered his earlier question.

"I'm not going to turn you in. I'm not going to order your execution."

"Thank you." I almost laughed. He said it as if I'd awarded him some great honour.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"At first? Because I didn't trust you." I felt as if he'd driven a knife into my heart. Oh, I understood. I knew, as he knew, that the Arthur he'd first met would have turned him over to Uther without a moment's hesitation but ...

"I understand that. I really was a prat back then." I smiled. At least, I tried to. Merlin's attempt looked pretty pathetic, so I expect mine was even worse.

"And now you're not. Well, not as much, anyway." I understood, he understood. He was saying that I was his friend.

What, you didn't get that? I think we have our own code now, Merlin and I. Prat, idiot, clotpole. They're not insults – not between the two of us. Neither of us can say the 'L' word but ...

We understand.

I hope Guinevere does too. It probably won't be as easy for her to accept. I expect I'll have to meet her half way. I will have to learn to say it – she will have to learn to believe it. Perhaps I should say ... something similar to Merlin.

"So, why?" I asked.

"Because you changed so gradually. Because the insults started off as real insults and then very, very slowly the same words started to mean something ... different," he said.

You see? He understands too.

"I suppose. I just wish ..."

"Yes, so do I."

"Merlin, I'm going to need time but ... I want you to know that ..."

"Yes?"

"It has been some while now that I've considered you as ... my friend." There that wasn't as difficult as I'd thought.

"Thank you, but this has changed things?"

"No, not exactly. It's just ... puts things on hold for a while?" He nodded. "I think perhaps ... I need to talk to Guinevere." He smiled then, a similar one to the smirk he'd shown earlier but ... it wasn't quite the same. He knew, he understood. "How is it that two commoners have become my closest friends?"

"You can call me that now? Even after this?" I frowned for a moment, considering.

"Yes. Even if I hated you now and locked you up in the dungeon ... I think I would still call you my friend."

"And, if you did. Even if you ordered my execution, I would still call you my best friend too." I lowered my head and shook it - fighting the ridiculous tears that were forming.

"I won't do that."

"I know."

"But ... I do need some time before ..."

"I understand."

"Will you _please_ let me finish a sentence?"

"Why? I know what you're going to say." I looked up at him sharply and his eyes widened. "N-not because of the magic, but because of our ... friendship?" He winced as he said it but I understood.

I didn't need to say it. He didn't need to say it.

Love needs no words. It just needs understanding.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** Whoa – deep! Not quite sure where that came from but, as a British tomboy female, I think I understand these two boys more than some girls might. My other half is very much like Arthur in that regard (even though he's tall, dark and skinny like Merlin) so a lot of this comes from personal experience as we usually only show our feelings through banter too. Perhaps that's why I've always felt so comfortable writing Arthur and Merlin._

_I did this 'overlap from a different pov' in The Invisible Servant' and rather enjoyed it, so I thought I'd give it another try._

_I've now basically written chapter 19 and 20, so it's all downhill from now on with just some final editing before the updates. Some of you lovely people have already started to worry about the end. Thank you for you support. I've a few ideas lined up but nothing has really grabbed me yet. Feel free to let me know the sort of fics you would like me to write/develop next (check my profile for some of the ideas that are currently 'floating')  
><em>


	19. Ch 19: How To Beat A Warlock

_... previously ..._

_The Knights of The Round Table_

_"Sit down all of you and let's continue. I know it's a shock but … Merlin and his magic are the only reason that any of us are still alive and, despite my father's first law still being in place, I believe it is essential that we have a sorcerer on our side. How else will we be able to defeat our enemies?"_

_"But … as you said. The law …?" said Leon._

_"Yes. Now, I have to ask you all. You have shown me great loyalty during the incident with the cup. You risked your lives for me and I have invited you to this meeting to ask for your advice on the changes I now wish to make. I have already changed the law in regard to commoners becoming knights if their abilities are good enough and now, I wish you opinion on the sensitve subject of magic. I won't be changing the law over night – but I do need to start making subtle moves towards allowing magic back and promoting Merlin and allowing him to use his gifts more openly is the first step in doing this. I have heard to ask if any of you have any objections to this. The senior lords certainly will, but I can do nothing without the full support of my Round Table. Leon?"_

_"I have always been your friend and your loyal subject Arthur first and foremost. This is … surprising but … I trust your judgement. You have my total fealty."_

_"Thank you, and about Merlin?" Leon swallowed hard and turned to the skinny man on his left. "I … I can see the military logic of your decision, Sire and am more than aware of his loyalty to you. As long as he does no harm to you or Camelot then I shall keep his secret."_

_"Thank you." Merlin's reply was heartfelt and Leon nodded briefly and sat down, still looking a little uncomfortable. _

_"I don't think the situation has changed much for the rest of us," said Gwaine. "Well, this Merlin thing obviously … I'm most offended that you didn't tell me by the way …"_

_"Although apparently not very surprised," Merlin countered._

_"It does make a certain amount of sense, when I think back on various events. Anyway, as far as I'm concerned Arthur, if you can accept Merlin after finding out that he has magic, then you have my complete and total allegiance."_

_"Elyan, Percival?" Merlin asked. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you."_

_"It is a shock," Elyan said but ..." he looked at his sister. "You knew too … and Lancelot?" They both nodded. "Well, despite growing up believing that all magic is evil, I know Merlin and .. well, he isn't so." He shook his head, trying to get his thoughts in order. "You're right, it makes perfect sense to have a sorcerer on our side."_

"_Foolhardy not to have one, in fact," said Percival quietly._

"_My thoughts exactly," said Arthur. "In fact, now I'm worried about just having one," he shook his head in disbelieve. "Can you believe that? I'm now considering actively seeking them out."_

"_I think I'm offended," said Merlin and grinned when he saw everyone's confused looks. "What? I've defended Camelot and saved all your lives so many times all undercover whilst playing the idiot. You think I couldn't continue to do that job when I can now use rather more than the little party tricks I've been displaying so far._

"_You call how you defeated that group of bandits a 'party trick?' said Arthur incredulously. He leant back on his chair and folded his arms with a smug grin at the numerous stunned looks he saw._

"_Pretty much. I haven't exactly had much time to study over the years, after all. Just wait until I really start learning how to do magic." _

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** Thank you so much for all your lovely comments about these last few chapters._

_Can you spot the 'Buffy' quote in this one? It's my absolute favourite and, although I've used an edited version before, I was delighted to find that it fits perfectly here._

* * *

><p><strong>19. How To Beat A Warlock<br>**

As soon as Arthur had concluded the meeting, Merlin was instantly surrounded by everyone and bombarded with numerous questions about his magic. Rather overwhelmed, the young warlock found himself instinctively backing towards Arthur - seeking his protection - which, a part of him decided, was highly ironic given the circumstances.

"Enough!" Arthur shouted, placing a hand on Merlin's shoulder and stepping alongside him. "I need not remind you that, as far as the majority of Camelot in concerned, Merlin is still just my servant and of no great importance. There will be a time, very soon, for his abilities to be revealed to all, but that time is not now. Please try to curb your curiosity – you'll all get a chance to talk to him privately about this. Now, it's time you lot went training."

"That's great," said Gwaine with a huge grin. "Merlin can join in with our sparring, now we know that he can hold his own."

"Gwaine, did you not hear what I just said? Merlin cannot be seen to be doing magic outside of this room. He has enough experience to know what he can and cannot get away with but ... his talent is not for your entertainment."

"Fair enough," said Leon quietly "but, what you were just saying about Camelot's defences and what Merlin was saying about practising. Shouldn't we view this as an opportunity to learn how to defeat our magical enemies?"

"Perhaps but, as I said, we cannot risk having the Lords find out yet."

"So, we arrange a hunting trip," Elyan suggested. "Go and find somewhere secluded and then, not only can Merlin answer our questions and show us what he can do, but we can also start planning and training against a possible magical threat."

Arthur frowned slightly, looking at the various excited expressions in front of him, whilst Merlin muffled a laugh at their open, pleading expressions. Gwaine caught his amusement and grinned.

"Please, Father ... please may we?" he asked in a high pitched voice and Merlin burst into uncontrollable giggles.

* * *

><p>It had taken a few days to arrange as it hadn't been easy for Arthur to persuade the Lords that the young King should be allowed some time outside of the castle every now and then. He wasn't going into enemy or bandit filled territory, he insisted, it wasn't even a proper hunting trip - he was simply going for a day out with friends and a few guards.<p>

So, it wasn't long before Arthur set out with Merlin, Gwen, Lancelot, Gwaine, Leon, Elyan and Percival - the knights dressed informally with just the lightest of chain-mail - to a quiet secluded spot near the river, their horses laden with swords, cross bows and a large picnic.

"Fine, so do you reckon we're secluded enough here, Merlin? Can you tell?" Arthur asked when they'd reached their destination. Merlin closed his eyes for a moment before nodding.

"Yes, Arthur, it's all clear. I'll continue to keep an eye out," he shook his head, "a mind out ... I mean." The other knights exchanged an interested look.

"So, all those times recently when you insisted we put out scouts ...?" Elyan asked incredulously. Arthur and Merlin exchanged an amused look and grinned innocently at him. The other knights groaned.

"So, how about I see what you're really capable of then, Merlin?" said Gwaine with a grin. "Go get a sword."

"Why would I need a sword?" He replied confused. Gwaine looked equally baffled by his reply, but Elyan had appeared at the warlock's side with a weapon and handed it to Merlin before anyone had time to explain the plan.

"So, you and I can fight on an even footing now," said Gwaine gleefully. "I'm assuming that you can use your magic to be stronger and faster than normal?"

"Well yes, I could but ...?" He looked around at the others to see if they understood his confusion, but most seemed to be eagerly anticipating a sparring match and Merlin sighed and decided to simply play along ... for now.

Gwaine came at him and Merlin basically did what he always did when fighting a superior swordsman; attempted to block and parry as much as he could but with the new advantage of being able to use his magic openly if he so desired. To the audience the warlock looked as awkward and inelegant as usual but, this time, he was slowing time down a little to give him more chance to react, and adding a magical push to the sword every time it touched Gwaine's. It didn't look especially pretty, but he noticed that Gwaine's eyes were widening and the knight was beginning to look a little out of breath. Merlin grinned and relaxed a little, his confidence showing in his posture as he found the rhythm and the timing of the thing. After a while, he became more and more confident about the subtle spells he was using, before suddenly giving rather more push on his next sword strike than was necessary, and throwing Gwaine across the makeshift fighting arena they had created.

"But ... you didn't even say anything," said Gwaine rising to his feet shakily. "I thought you sorcerers had to chant a lot of mumbo-jumbo to make your magic work?"

"I have to do that for difficult things," said Merlin and then grinned at everyone's shock at the thought that what he'd just done was easy.

Gwaine got back up and was joined by Elyan – the two now approaching Merlin with a grin. Despite being initially worried, he found that all he needed to do was slow down time just a little bit more, so that he was able to turn quickly from one opponent to another. To those watching, Merlin seemed to be fighting incredibly quickly, his sword arm sometimes blurring with speed. When he had those two knights laying flat out on their backs on the ground too, Merlin risked a look at Arthur who was leaning against a tree, his arms folded, legs slightly crossed and his face totally unreadable. Gwen sat on a blanket on the floor next to him and gave him a broad smile of encouragement.

"Fine. How about three of us?" Merlin turned around to see Leon and Percival walking towards him with Lancelot in the middle. Merlin tried not to grin at the sight. The darker man was above average height but, compared to these two, he looked tiny. Then again, Merlin was tall enough that he rarely had to look up at anyone, so he had to admit that he found it highly unnerving to be facing two such towering opponents.

Still, it made little difference whether it were Elyan or Percival when it came to magic. In fact, Merlin decided, this was all getting a bit boring. They still didn't get it. They still didn't understand that he didn't need a weapon that, in fact, it was more of a hindrance to him than a help. But, how could they understand? To these men fighting was all about swords and maces and cross bows. He grinned as a few interesting ideas started to form in his mind. He parried Lancelot's attack, slowing down time for long enough to be able to turn towards Leon and push hard with magic against his sword as their two weapons made contact. The older knight flew backwards much as the others had previously but then, Merlin _did_ chant a few words, threw his left hand in Percival's direction and then quickly chanted another spell at Lancelot. His friend's eyes went wide as he saw the wicked gleam in Merlin's eyes and suddenly there was a surprised shout from behind him and gasps of astonishment from the four spectators.

"Isn't that cheating?" asked Percival, who was now currently hanging upside down, six feet in the air.

"Woof," Lancelot agreed.

* * *

><p>"Merlin!" said Gwaine gleefully. "You turned Lancelot into a dog." Gwen giggled and Arthur glared at her, silently warning her not to go over and pat him. He probably should have turned him into something less cute, Merlin thought belatedly, before lazily chanted the counter spell. The large, black dog turned back in Lancelot who, still on his haunches shook his head violently. He coughed, which still sounded a little like a bark.<p>

"Merlin, did you have to do that?" he said, looking slightly dazed.

"Sorry, couldn't resist."

"Ah ... Merlin, would you mind?" He turned to notice Percival still lightly floating upside down as if he weighed nothing at all.

"Oh, yeah ... of course." He just waved a hand in his general direction and the big man floated down a little before suddenly falling onto the floor in a heap. After a few more moments, all five knights started to advance on him again and Merlin started to shake his head sadly.

"You just don't get it, do you guys? I don't need a sword." He threw it on the ground. "I don't need weapons because ... well ... I am a weapon." His voice turned firmer on these last four words and he felt a great deal of satisfaction at seeing all five hesitate for a brief moment before continuing their advance. Merlin risked a quick look at Arthur who had resumed his apparently bored stance against the tree, whilst Gwen was now sitting up, her hands on the blanket in front of her, biting her lip nervously. Those two, Merlin thought, had some idea about just how out of their depth these five really were. He put both palms up towards the advancing knights and then, with a golden glow of his eyes and absolutely no words at all, he pushed a little, noting with satisfaction how all five were pushed gently backwards. They tried again and he pushed a little harder. On the third attempt, Merlin lowered his arms, closed his eyes and chanted a spell. This time the knights appeared not to encounter any resistance and moved towards the warlock with no hindrance. That was until their sword tips touched the invisible shield he'd just created around himself. Merlin opened his eyes slowly and grinned. He happened to be looking at Gwaine at the time and saw total shock on his friend's face.

"Good grief, Merlin. Do you have to look at me like that?"

"Like what? You started this little charade, Gwaine. Why don't you come and finish what you started?" Gwaine's expression hardened as pushed his sword point towards Merlin again and encountered a force which felt like solid rock. As the knights became more confident about not hurting Merlin, they all started to stab and strike harder at the invisible wall. After several long moments of this Merlin gave an exaggerated yawn.

"Bored now," he said calmly and his eyes glowed brightly. All five were flung wildly up in the air and Arthur suddenly stood upright, shocked at this violent display, whilst Gwen gave a muffled shriek. Merlin quickly dropped his shield and held out his hands, gradually slowing down his friends' descent so they came to no harm.

"I think perhaps Merlin has made his point?" said Arthur calmly, although his eyes did look a little wild.

"Do you understand now?" the warlock asked. "One against five is easy. I could probably do that to a whole army."

"You're joking?" Elyan breathed and Merlin shook his head.

"The only restriction I have at the moment is that I cannot use this openly in front of the Lords. When I was younger and less able, I couldn't risk being found out because I would have been sentenced to death. Not that it was likely that Uther could have actually killed me but, the point was that if I had to hide or be exiled, I would not be able remain close enough to Arthur to protect him. Even now, my secret can't be revealed because Arthur needs to be the type of King that everyone loves and respects and, thanks to Uther, the majority of the population think that magic and everyone associated with it, is evil. Until we can change that view, I have to continue to work undercover."

"But, we do need to know how to defeat a sorcerer, there must be a way," said Leon.

"For a small group of knights without me?" He shook his head. "Unlikely."

"But, if we caught one unawares. Made sure that he couldn't cast a spell?" Elyan suggested.

"Try ..." said Merlin with a calm shrug. "Come here and hold me captive." They approached him nervously at first but Merlin didn't resist. He let Percival hold his two thin wrists in just one large hand behind his back, whilst Leon and Lancelot held a shoulder and Elyan rearranged his neckerchief and used it as a gag. Merlin caught Arthur's eye at this point and saw him grin at his servant's indignant expression at the use of his clothing in this fashion. Then he felt something cold and sharp touch his neck and guessed that Percival's free hand was holding a knife to his throat.

"So, sorcerer," said Gwaine, who was standing slightly behind and to his right and obviously revelling in playing his part. "Now you're captured and bound and we're all behind you. What now?"

There were many possibilities, Merlin thought. He could probably simply push backwards but then ... If they wanted him to play the part of an evil sorcerer then maybe he should think and act the way they did. He looked over towards Arthur and grinned through his gag, before allowing his eyes to fall on the collection of swords lying on the ground. Following his gaze, Arthur gave a sudden yelp and quickly moved from his position by the tree to crouch next to Gwen, pulling her close to him.

"What ..?" she spluttered, confused. "Arthur .. ?" Six swords rose majestically from the ground in front of them and hurtled towards the King and his betrothed. The weapons came to a halt a palm's length from the couple, points all aimed at their heads. Merlin moved his head very slightly so that he could see Gwaine and raised his eyebrows at him. The knight's expression turned from shock to amusement and he moved towards the warlock, lowering his gag.

"What are your terms ... sorcerer?" he asked with a wicked glint.

"Obvious, I would have thought. Lower your knife and release me or your King dies." The hands were removed and the swords floated back towards the field and then dropped. Merlin shrugged.

"Sorry, Gwen. Hope I didn't scare you."

"N-no, that's fine. I knew that you wouldn't ... I trust you."

"Hey, aren't you going to apologise to me?" asked Arthur

"Nope, you still owe me for all the times you called me an idiot. Anyway, you knew what I was going to do."

"I can't believe you'd go to those lengths to win that round?" said Elyan crossly.

"I wouldn't," said Merlin, "but your enemies would – and you all need to understand just how much danger you're really in whilst facing a sorcerer when I'm not around to help.

"So, how can we win? What do we need to do?" asked Leon. "What is the very best form of defence in this situation?" Merlin turned to the group, all looking at him with wide expectant eyes.

"There's only one possible defence," he said, his voice now deep and serious, "and even then there's no guarantee of survival."

"What? What do we have to do?" Merlin's gaze intensified, a wickedly joyous glint appearing in his eyes.

"Run."

xoXox

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** First thing I was taught about self defence in Taekwondo. 1) Try to avoid getting yourself into that position in the first place, 2) Run. Only fight as a last resort._

_So, that's for all of you who loved Bamf!Merlin in chapter 13. Even thought he was only play acting here, it was good for him to show all those 'rough tough save the world' types exactly what they're up against._


	20. Ch 20: The Perils Of Parchment Part 2

_Well done to L.A.H.H for recognising the quote. 'Bored now' in the previous chapter. Love Dark!Willow.  
><em>

_Also, this two part ficlet was inspired by P G Wodehouse's 'The Code of the Woosters.' In that story Gussie (Elyan) recieves the advice from Jeeves (Percival) and writes his observations down in a note book which he proptly looses. Stephanie (Gwaine) finds it and bribes Bertie (Merlin) whilst also asking her fiance to steal a policeman's helmet (Yeah, had to go off on a bit of a tangent for that one!)  
><em>

_Anyway, straight on with the story, as there's not much point putting a 'previously' up on this one._ Part 1 was chapter 17 if you need a reminder._  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong>The Perils Of Parchment<strong>

(Part 2)

Merlin made his way to the record's office feeling most put out. Honestly, he would have been happy to oblige Gwaine anyway, he didn't have to be so nasty about it. After all, it was a good idea to have Arthur and the Lords acknowledge the knight's status and the fact that Arthur had accepted him before knowing who he was, said a lot about the prince's changing attitude as well as how ridiculous the Knight's code really was. He froze at the door way when he saw Sir Geoffrey sitting at his desk and sighed, getting the strangest sense of deja vu.

"Hello," Merlin said casually, as he walked past the records keeper.

"What do you want?"

"You ask me that almost every day."

"So?"

"So, I come here to find books for Gaius or to look up information that he wants me to study."

"So you keep saying, so _he_ keeps saying, but you seem like the most unlikely student to me."

"Hey, I'm a lot brighter than I look."

"That would not be difficult."

It was getting annoying now. Perhaps he could ask Arthur to give him some official permission to come here but then, the prince probably felt exactly the same about his level of intelligence as Geoffrey did. When, oh when, would Camelot actually acknowledge the key role he was playing in it's survival? He took down the familiar volume and flicked through it to find the correct page. A few subtle spells were needed to distract the old man who seemed to be hovering very close – obviously not trusting him – as well as the copying spell which transferred all the information onto a new piece of parchment. With a big sigh, Merlin rolled up the seal, slipped it up a sleeve and then returned the book to the shelf, Geoffrey's eyes following him all the time. Unbeknown to him, the old man walked over to the shelf Merlin had left, to discover exactly what book he had been looking at.

Merlin wasn't the only one getting a strange sense of deja vu.

* * *

><p>"Merlin, where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you," asked Lancelot panic written all over his face.<p>

"Why? What's happened?"

"Gwaine's been hauled up in front of Arthur and the nobles accused of theft and sexual assault."

"Huh ... what?" The theft bit he understood; in fact, given the way this day was panning out, it wasn't entirely unexpected but ... sexual assault? The pair quickly made their way to the main hall.

They arrived to find most of Camelot's elite in attendance and started to make their ways through the crowd towards the front of the room. Arthur was sitting on the King's throne, Gwaine in front of him, restrained by two guards with the highest ranked lords hovering nearby.

"Who brings these charges before me?"

"I accuse this Knight of theft," said Lord Aron, and Merlin saw Arthur's face betray just the slightest uncertainly. "I saw him running from my chambers and noticed an item of jewellery missing from my desk – a ring ... of some importance."

"I see, and the other charge?" One of the guards stepped forward.

"I was pursuing this man, Sir Gwaine, at the request of Lord Aron when I saw him ... touching a lady of the court in a most inappropriate manner," said the man nervously.

"He was running away, you say? Perhaps he just bumped into her?"

"Ah no, he had his head close to her neck and his hand was ... ah ..." the guard turned pink.

"We need the testimony of the lady in question. Did you recognise her?" The guard looked incredibly nervous at the question.

"T-the Lady Guinevere ... Sire." Arthur's face was a picture as he turned to glare at Gwaine. Merlin might have even found it funny, in other circumstances. He and Lancelot moved a little further forward.

"Is she not here?" Arthur asked

"I could not find her, Sire," said Lancelot, reaching the front. "Perhaps she was too upset?" Although the twitch of his lips made it fairly obvious that he did not believe that for a moment. Merlin was still confused though – what _had_ Gwaine been doing?

"Now do you see, your Highness, my Lords and Ladies, what happens to our great court when one allows commoners the privileges that only those of the noble houses are due?" Lord Aron intoned. "No offence is meant, of course, but this proves, beyond doubt, that those born of blood have more honour, nobility and pureness of heart then those poor peasants who, by no fault of their own, do not have the wit or learning to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner." Merlin was torn between annoyance and amusement by this speech and decided now might be a good time to make an announcement of his own. He stepped boldly forwards.

"Lord Aron, as a commoner, I can assure you that I take 'no offence' at your statement." Several muffled giggles could be heard. "As, in this case, Sir Gwaine does not stand as a representative example. He was, in fact, born of noble blood." Merlin walked forwards with the scroll and handed it to Arthur with a bow and a small grin. The prince looked at him suspiciously before reading it and then handing it to Aron.

"Oh, that's appears to be in order," the Lord replied calmly.

"What, so now he's a noble, being accused of these acts is acceptable?" shouted Arthur. "Can you hear yourself, Aron?"

"Ah, no offense mean, Sire, but that wasn't quite what ..."

"Actually, Sire, I have reason to suspect that the document is not genuine," said Sir Geoffrey, shuffling in through one of the back doors of the hall.

"What?"

"I spotted Merlin leaving the library earlier after inspecting a certain book on lineage. The last time I saw the boy reading the volume, was shortly before Sir Lancelot presented his seal to you, five years ago, claiming a noble lineage that he was not entitled to."

"You're accusing Merlin of ... forgery," said Arthur in a disbelieving tone. "Forgery of this quality?"

_Thanks, Arthur._

"Yes, Sire."

"This isn't a forgery, Sir Geoffrey," said Merlin. "It is a true document and has not been altered in any way." _Copied, but not altered._

"Yes, but earlier, Gwaine here had no proof currently on his person or in his possession that says he is the same Lord Gwaine who is mentioned here and, given the situation as it stands at the moment, I cannot see how he can prove it," said Geoffrey.

"Sir Gwaine, come here," Arthur ordered. "Do you swear that this document is a true representation of your birth heritage and family."

"I do, Sire."

"Then, that is good enough for me."

"But, Sire. Whether or not he is a commoner or a noble, there is no doubt that he is a thief and a womaniser," Aron objected.

"Certainly there is doubt," said Gwaine. "I deny both charges." There were sounds of disbelief around that hall and Gwaine smiled as he gave an exaggerated shrug of his shoulders. "Alright, I'll rephrase that, I deny both of these specific charges. I swear that I did not steal the ring from it's owner, nor was I in anyway inappropriate in my attentions to the Lady Guinevere." This was followed by several giggles and Arthur's lips twitched, obviously acknowledging Gwaine's comment about the ring's true owner, as well as his very well known character flaws.

"Prince Arthur may trust your word, Sir Gwaine, but I do not," said Aron.

"Then, by all means search me - you will not find it." He caught Arthur's gaze and smiled slightly, giving the prince the confidence to nod his approval of the search. The ring was not found.

"The court is dismissed," says Arthur. "Sir Gwaine, Merlin ... a word in private, if you don't mind." The three young men waited until the rest had left and the guards had barred the door.

"Well, where's my ring?" Arthur asked Gwaine.

"I don't have it but ... it is safe."

"And Guinevere?"

"It was all perfectly innocent, I give you my word."

"So ...?"

"So, the ring will be returned to you shortly, once the fuss has died down." Arthur glared at Gwaine for a long moment.

"But, Arthur. How are you going to explain how you suddenly have the King's sealing ring after all of this?" Merlin asked.

"Ah, yes. That could be awkward," the prince agreed.

"We need to make sure that it is awarded to you officially, so that no-one can deny it," the warlock continued.

"But how? Uther already gave it to Aron."

"But did he?"

"What are you babbling about, Merlin? Of course he did, that's the whole problem."

"No, no, I see where Merlin's going with this," said Gwaine. "Your father isn't well. You just need Gaius to prove that he wasn't in his right mind to make such an important legal decision and then the ring will automatically come back to you."

"But, will it? If put to a vote, the Lords and, more importantly, Geoffrey, are sure to side with Aron," said Arthur.

"Look, let me get Gaius to talk to Geoffrey about the legality of all of this," Merlin suggested.

"That's all very well, but I still don't actually have the ring."

"I told you, it'll come to you soon and, Arthur, as I do now have _my_ seal, how about I join you and Leon against the three common rabble during your tourney and give the nobles a show to remember?" Arthur glared at him briefly for his turn of phrase but it soon turned into a slight smile.

"Perfect – that's a good combination. Percival and Lancelot on their side will make it an interesting match. Fine."

"Hey, don't forget Elyan," said Merlin.

"Yes, he's good ... I didn't mean to imply ..."

"Give him a bit of a break, Arthur, you have no idea how nervous he gets around you," said Merlin.

"Merlin, are you sure you ...?" Gwaine cautioned.

"What? Elyan?" asked Arthur

"And, as he's going to be your brother at some point, you really don't want him upset because then, Gwen will be upset and that means ..."

"Yes, thank you, Merlin. I know he's a little nervous around me sometimes but he is getting better. In fact, despite the hangover, he gave me a very good work out this morning. Didn't seem intimidated by me at all." They couldn't help it, both Merlin and Gwaine burst out laughing. "What?"

"Looks like Percival was right about that then?" said Gwaine and Merlin laughed even harder.

"Will you two shut up and tell me what's so funny!"

* * *

><p>Arthur arrived back in his room after having dispatched Merlin to talk to Gaius about the issue of the sealing ring's ownership, and sending Gwaine along to Geoffrey to formalise his own seal. He then spent some time at his desk, planning his tournament with a better idea of how to show off his ... three ... commoner knights, with the court scene also having given him some ideas of how to improve the speech he was planning to deliver afterwards. He'd wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting there but the next thing he was fully aware of was a sharp, authoritative rap on the door.<p>

"Come." He looked up surprised to see Lord Aron entering his chambers. A very red and angry Lord Aron, clutching a roll of parchment in his hand.

"S-sire ... I have to report a most ... disturbing find."

"What is it you have there?"

"Ah ... you see - not entirely convinced of Sir Gwaine's innocence in the matter of the ring, I ordered his chambers searched and ..."

"Excuse me!" Arthur interrupted and Aron swallowed hard. "You? Ordered?"

"Well, you see ..."

"The knight in question was acquitted of all charges."

"Well, no offence, Sire but ... " He suddenly turned an even deeper shade of red as he glared at the parchment in his hand. "What I mean is that ... I thought ..."

"In future, don't think, Aron. It will be much better for everyone in Camelot."

"Sire, I must object ..."

"Fine. So, you came here to confess? I take it you didn't find the ring?"

"No, Sire. I found this instead." He handed Arthur the parchment and he partially unrolled it, noting that it was written in a hand that he wasn't sure he recognised. The first part was all about Aron himself and Arthur had a great deal of trouble not smiling at the various accurate observations contained within it. "It was in Gwaine's room, Sire," Aron continued. "I would have thought that these new knights of yours would show some respect considering their current predicament."

"Ah, I can imagine that this must have ... ah ... although, I should perhaps point out that this is not Gwaine's hand. Here ... he wrote me this short note the other day and, as you can see ..." Arthur rummaged on his desk until he found the letter and handed it over. Aron nodded his agreement.

"I wonder at it being in his possession then."

"I shall look into it, if you'd like?"

"As you wish, although, you may not have noticed yet, sire, but I am not the only person mentioned in that document. There are a number of other high ranking individuals who's ... characters have been ... analysed in detail including, I'm afraid to say, your good self."

"What?" Arthur quickly opened the scroll even further and, on seeing a sentence which clearly included the words 'Merlin' 'affection' and 'intimate services" within it, he turned red and abruptly rolled it back up, quickly dismissing the Lord who, like Arthur earlier, was obviously trying hard to prevent a smile from crossing his face.

Once the old man had left, Arthur sat back at his desk and read the parchment in detail. As he got to the final section he started to grind his teeth but, on reading the very last sentence about his birth mark, Arthur threw the document down on the table with a flourish and growled just one word.

"Merlin!"

* * *

><p>Arthur was now pacing, the scroll on the desk, now lying half unfurled, whilst he tried to work out who had written it and why. Despite the fact that the last piece of information could have only come from his servant, (He didn't think his father had ever spent enough time with his infant child to have noticed such a thing) he knew for a fact that it wasn't Merlin's writing either. Still ... he was now furious with Aron for assuming control and going behind his back, with Gwaine for possessing the offensive document and having had some interaction with Guinevere that was deemed inappropriate, and Merlin, who he had started to believe he could trust more than anyone else in the whole world, casually revealing secrets that no-one but his future wife should ever know about.<p>

A quieter knock signalled the arrival of the one person that had just entered his mind at that last thought.

"Guinevere," he said, working hard to calm himself.

"Arthur, are you alright? You look terrible."

"I'm having a very trying day. How are you? What happened between you and Gwaine earlier?"

"Oh that," she said with a shy smile, moving very seductively towards him. He swallowed hard as he noted the beautiful pale green dress she was wearing, snugly fitted at the bodice and which, as she moved closer to him and he was required to look down, inevitable afforded him a very pleasant view in the process. "I bumped into Gwaine as he was running down the corridor. He said he was in a bit of trouble and had something of yours – asked me if I'd pass it onto you."

"Oh," said Arthur with a sigh. "He gave you the ring?"

"Yes."

"So, what was all this about ... ah ... sexual assault?"

"What?" Gwen giggled. "Well, I wouldn't call it that. He just ... well." She coloured and looked up at him very seductively through her lashes. "He just thought that something so precious ought to be placed where none but the Regent should be able to lay hands on it."

"Ah, sorry?" She smiled at him again and then moved her own gaze down to her cleavage. It was impossible, therefore, for Arthur's eyes not to take the same route. At least, that was his excuse. However, he was easily distracted from her body by the obvious gleam of something gold, settled in-between her breasts. "He ... he put the ring down your ...?" He started to splutter.

"Hush, Arthur, he dropped it down there, and whispered the instructions in my ear at the same time. That's obviously what the guard saw; his hand ... hovering over my ... and his head close to ..." Arthur growled and Gwen giggled. "There's no need to be jealous, Arthur. Your ring's right here and you're most welcome to retrieve it." She bit her lip as she looked up at him coyly and the Regent's anger quickly subsided. With a small smile he moved slowly forward for a kiss, his hand gently resting on her collar bone and then moving very, very, slowly down towards the ring. No need to rush he thought and, even when his fingers had closed around the object, he kept his hand where it was, fingers moving gently. He felt Guinevere gasp slightly through the kiss.

"Ahem!" A loud cough sent the two of them flying quickly apart.

"Honestly, Merlin don't you ever knock?" His servant was trying to look stern and failing miserably.

"Ah, I know you two are officially courting now but still ... is that entirely appropriate, do you think?" he said with a sudden broad grin at the glare he was receiving from Arthur.

"I was just retrieving the ring that Gwaine so thoughtfully 'left' for me."

"Gwaine left it ...?" Gwen grinned at him and pointed down her dress, leaning forward as she did, so that Merlin was also afforded an interesting view. Arthur noticed that his servant turned an even brighter shade of red than Aron had earlier.

_Aron - Merlin - Parchment._

He turned his eyes to the desk and both Guinevere and Merlin followed his gaze. Merlin uttered something which sounded very much like a squeak.

"Oh, that's Elyan's writing," Guinevere said.

"What?" said Arthur. Merlin squeaked again.

"Ah, I've j-just remembered that ... I've got to..." Merlin stammered, starting to back towards the door.

"Where exactly do you think you're going?" asked Arthur in a threatening tone, as he walked slowly his servant.

"Anywhere?" he replied and, with a terrified look at Athur's furious face, suddenly turned tail and ran out the room as fast as his legs would carry him.

"_Merlin!_"

xoXox

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN** That's all for now but, as I said before, these two sets could be reopened at a later day. _ _Thanks for all your lovely comments, support and ideas on this one._

_I'm always happier just working seriously on one thing at a time and so now need to decide on my next 'project'. My priority is currently 'Sensing Magic' which I'm trying to expand and I'd love any suggestions you have on how I might do that. However, I now have a number of things on my 'to do' ideas which I've noted down on my profile page so feel free to PM me with any suggestions or requests you have about these. Or perhaps there was a drabble or short ficlet on here that you would like me to explore and extend into something longer? Do let me know.  
><em>


End file.
